By Kim Bo-eun
Airport officials are strengthening quarantine checks on passengers on international flights from the United States, Japan and other countries to protect the country from a deadly flu epidemic, which originated in the U.S.
Korean health authorities also reported an increasing number of influenza patients, but the virus here differs from that in other countries, they said.
Currently the one sweeping the U.S. is the H3N2 strain while the virus spreading in Korea is H1N1, the same type of flu that swept the nation three years earlier, health officials said.
The Korea Center for Disease Control and Prevention said Sunday the number of patients who received treatment at hospitals for symptoms similar to the flu virus has increased from 2.8 per 1,000 patients three weeks ago to 3.7.
Health authorities issue a warning of an epidemic when the figure reaches four per 1,000.
Experts say that the H1N1 flu is not expected to spread rapidly, as most citizens are immune to it due to past vaccinations.
Still, the government has advised pregnant women, the elderly and young children to make sure they are vaccinated against both the H3N2 and H1N1 viruses. It also said patients showing symptoms should immediately visit the hospital.
It has cautioned those traveling in and out of the countries hit by the flu epidemic.
“We are strengthening health checks on all passengers traveling by plane and ship in order to prevent the spread of the epidemic,” an agency official said.
Meanwhile, 47 states in the U.S. have reported widespread cases of influenza, which has claimed some 100 lives.