The National Institute of Hygiene has confirmed the fifth case of A/H1N1 influenza, commonly known as swine flu, in Poland.

The victim is a seven-year-old girl who flew from Toronto, Canada to Warsaw with her four-year-old brother and parents on Monday.

Currently, the girl is home and not in hospital, but her brother remains in an infectious diseases ward in a Sycow hospital, southwest Poland. The parents are healthy and the family, from Lower Silesia, are being asked to remain at home to avoid potential spread of the virus, according to Jan Bondar, spokesperson from the Chief Sanitary Inspectorate.

Bondar added that there are 196 potential cases of swine flu in Poland but only five are confirmed. There have been 21,940 cases of the virus in 69 countries around the world. To-date, 125 people have died from A/H1N1.

The infected girl flew on LOT airlines flight number LO 046 last week.

“Those people who flew from Toronto to Warsaw last Monday on flight number LO 046 and are experiencing flu-like symptoms should go immediately to the doctor,” appeals Bondar, adding that the virus incubates and manifests within seven days. (mmj)