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16 H1N1 deaths in total
By Jessica Jaganathan
A 95-YEAR-OLD Chinese woman died last week of complications related to Influenza A (H1N1), which brings the total number of deaths here to 16.
She had no known medical conditions and died of pneumonia contributed by the H1N1 infection, said the Ministry of Health's website on Tuesday.
Two other people, aged 53 and 70, died over the weekend.
Overall, infections from H1N1 appear to be tapering off since community spread began in Singapore in June.
Polyclinic attendances for upper respiratory tract infections fell by nine per cent to 14,296 last week, compared with 15,720 the week before.
Polyclinic attendances are usually a yardstick for a number of infectious diseases, such as flu, diarrhoea and conjunctivitis, in the wider community.
They have been dropping steadily since the peak of 24,477 cases a week at the beginning of last month.
Doctors had earlier said the rate of infections could be expected to slow as more people become exposed to the virus.
However, countries in the Northern Hemisphere such as the United States are reporting a higher-than-normal rate of influenza infections, which could signal a second wave of H1N1.
Members of the public should continue to seek medical attention when unwell, especially if they belong to high-risk groups, said doctors.
There are now 29 people in hospital with the virus, including nine in intensive care.
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