Backgrounder: Key facts about swine flu

　　世界衛生組織25日對在墨西哥造成至少20人死亡的新型豬流感病毒表示“非常擔心”，認為這種病毒明顯帶有轉化成流行性病毒的潛在可能。何為豬流感？有何預防措施？相關機構和專家如此回答十大問題。

　　Here are a few basics about the swine flu outbreak in the U.S. and Mexico.

　　What is swine flu?

　　It's flu that occurs in pigs. In rare cases, humans contract swine flu from close contact with pigs. The strain circulating now is cause for concern because it can pass directly from person to person. Like routine human flu, cases of swine flu can range from mild to severe.

　　何謂豬流感？

　　這是豬身上爆發的流感。在很少一些案例中，人類因與豬密切接觸而感染豬流感。目前流行的病毒毒株之所以令人擔憂，就是它能在人與人之間直接傳染。同普通的人流感一樣，豬流感病情也有從輕微到嚴重之分。

　　Is the disease the same in Mexico and the U.S.?

　　The virus appears to be the same. But the disease has caused at least 20 deaths in Mexico, while it has appeared more mild in the 20 confirmed U.S. cases, with no deaths and most patients recovering without needing to be hospitalized. It's unclear why confirmed cases have been more severe in Mexico than in the U.S. A CDC official warned on Sunday that as cases continue to emerge in the U.S., some may prove fatal.

　　墨西哥與美國爆發的同一種豬流感嗎？

　　致病的病毒看來是相同的。但墨西哥的豬流感已導致至少20人死亡，而美國已確診的20例豬流感則要輕微的多，其中並沒有死亡病例，大多數患者都在康複之中，無需住院治療。目前還不清楚為何墨西哥確診的病例要比美國嚴重的多。美國疾病控製預防中心(CDC)一位官員周日警告說，隨著美國繼續發現豬流感病例，其中一些可能會有生命危險。