Mexico swine flu or H1N1

MEXICO CITY – Mexico heath officials have said a swine flu or H1NI epidemic appears to be easing, but has urged Mexicans, not to let their guard down against a virus that has killed 18 people and is spreading across Asia and Europe.

Experts warned the flu virus could mutate and come back with a vengeance. However this is just a flu Virus..

With no suspected swine flu deaths in Mexico city since Wednesday and fewer people turning up at hospitals with virus symptoms. The Mexican health officials were guardedly optimistic that the worse was over in the Swine flu epicenter.

Governments must act cautiously, said Michael Osterholm, an infectious disease specialist at the University of Minnesota who has advised the U.S. government on flu preparations.

This is a flu virus acting like a flu virus and causing, at worst, mild to moderate influenza,” he said. “We have no room for complacency here, but we have to have a proportional response. What are the risks at the immediate time?”

Cases outside Mexico suggested the new swine flu strain is weaker than feared. But governments moved quickly anyway to ban flights and prepare quarantine plans.

The World Health Organization decided against a full pandemic alert, but that doesn’t mean people can relax, said Dr. Mike Ryan, WHO’s global alert and response director.

“These viruses mutate, these viruses changes, these viruses can further re assort with other genetic material, with other viruses,” he said. “So it would be imprudent at this point to take too much reassurance” from the small number of deaths.