Turkish hospital releases two recovered swine flu patients

Haldun Erturk, head physician at Haseki Hospital in Istanbul, earlier said the man and his mother had reacted well to treatment and had completely recovered from the deadly H1N1 virus.

The two patients, the first swine flu cases in Turkey, and four other family members, also being held in quarantine at the hospital, were due to be released later in the day, he added.

The mother and her 27-year-old son were hospitalized last Thursday after thermal cameras, set up at Istanbul airport as a precaution against the disease, picked up that the man was running a high fever. The virus was later also detected in the woman.

They had arrived in Turkey on a flight from the United States which had made a stopover in Amsterdam and were on their way to Iraq.

It was not immediately known where the two would go after being discharged.

The Turkish Health Ministry said Wednesday all but three of the 166 other passengers on the flight were tracked down and examined, all testing negative for the virus.

The World Health Organization reported a rise of almost 800 in swine flu infections and five new deaths Thursday, with 11,034 people now confirmed as having contracted the disease which has killed 85.

The majority of the new cases recognized by the global body come from the four countries worst hit by the deadly A(H1N1) virus: Mexico (three more deaths and 244 infections), the United States (two deaths, 241 infections), Canada (221) and Japan (49).

The WHO tally crossed the 10,000 barrier on Wednesday, with 41 countries now having confirmed swine flu cases.