Swine flu has arrived in the South, with three cases being confirmed in Dunedin.
Two teenagers and an adult are reported to have influenza A (H1N1) and although not personally linked, one of the teenagers and the adult, a teacher, attended the same school, health officials said yesterday.
Until this announcement Otago and Southland were the only regions in the country not to have confirmed cases of the virus.
Medical Officer of Health Dr Derek Bell said the cases included the "probable" case of a school-aged boy, reported in the Otago Daily Times on Saturday.
In each case those affected had been in contact with people from Canterbury, where swine flu has been reported.
The teacher and pupil might have been exposed to the same group of visiting pupils from Christchurch, Dr Bell said.
All three cases are being treated at home and their symptoms are understood to be mild to moderate.
One was believed to be "on the mend", he said.
He would not name the schools the two teenagers went to as "it was not helpful to focus on the schools" when there were probably other cases about in all schools.
One of the schools involved had noticed more absences for illness last week.
"We think it is circulating in those groups."Indications were that a mix of influenza viruses, including swine flu, were now in the community; and health services in Otago and Southland had moved from containment to management of the virus, in line with the rest of the country.
"Well children can go to school. This should not put them off going to school," Dr Bell said.
The same message to limit the spread of the swine flu or seasonal influenza should be followed.
That included staying away from school, work or social gatherings if you are unwell.
With school holidays soon, Dr Bell's advice was to tell visitors if there was flu within a group.
Unwell people should not attend any gatherings, he said.
An increase in swine flu and seasonal influenza cases in the city was expected in the region in coming weeks.
There were no plans to activate the community-based assessment centres in Dunedin, he said.
"We expect that with good telephone triage, most people will not even need to see a doctor, but if primary care becomes inundated, we will look to set up CBACs when and where they are needed," Dr Bell said.
Seasonal influenza figures were increasing, but until recently had been tracking along a similar path to other years.
At 2pm yesterday, there were 523 confirmed swine flu cases in New Zealand, up from 507 on Saturday.
The cumulative total of confirmed cases by region are: Northland (5); Auckland (151); Waikato (21); Bay of Plenty/Lakes (20); Gisborne (1); Hawkes Bay (6); Taranaki (1); Wanganui/Palmerston North (6); Wellington (178); Nelson/Marlborough (6); Canterbury (128) and Otago/Southland (3).
