Record cases of winter flu recorded in the southern hemisphere have placed UAE doctors on alert about the potential for a wave of illness.
Australia has reported record cases of influenza for its winter season, that runs from April to October. Typically the severity of Australia’s winter flu is an early indicator of what lies in store for the northern hemisphere’s prevailing winter months, and the Middle East.
More than 410,000 lab-confirmed cases were reported in Australia this year, up from an all-time high the previous year of 365,000, the Royal Australian College of GPs said. The UAE rolled out its annual flu campaign in late September, calling on young children, the elderly and vulnerable groups to be vaccinated.
With the school term ending this year on December 5, many families will be planning an extra long winter break, with more likely to travel home for the festive season. Doctors said that could exacerbate the spread of flu at a typically busy time of year for medics.
“The trend this year is towards the higher side of cases, although every winter we have a lot of influenza cases,” said Dr Lekha Kawal Kapoor, an ear, nose and throat specialist at Medcare Hospital, Sharjah.
“Seasonal viral infections always peak at this time, although the number of cases we are seeing are slightly higher than previous years. In the winter season people come together for the festive season and the holidays.
"They travel to various places which increases their exposure to others who could be carrying the virus and spreading it around. We always tend to see a spike after any kind of holidays, but definitely after Christmas.”
Record number of cases
In Australia’s winter, more than 44,500 infections were among children under five, around 11 per cent of all cases, which was disproportionately high suggesting that age group is more vulnerable. More than one in three cases were in older children under 15.
Dr Kapoor said most of the cases tested so far in the UAE this winter at her hospital, were the A(H3N2) viral strain of influenza, with familiar symptoms of fever, sore throat, cough, nasal discharge and muscle aches.
“Most schools have very strictly told the children that if there is fever, or they're having any flu symptoms, don’t come into school,” said Dr Kapoor.
“Workplaces are also encouraging people who are actively coughing or have a high fever or flu to not come in to work. Since Covid, there has been a lot more awareness of how these viruses spread.”
It usually takes around two days from catching the virus, before symptoms appear. In the UK, government figures showed while flu levels are currently low, that looks set to change. An NHS report said cases were on the rise and there had been an unusually early start of the influenza season.
Of influenza viruses subtyped at the UKHSA Respiratory Virus Unit, the majority were A(H3N2). Overall weekly hospital admissions were increasing at 3.81 per 100,000 compared with 2.44 per 100,000 seven days before.
Meanwhile intensive care admissions were also on the rise, up in a week from 0.10 per 100,000 to 0.12. Last winter, the US faced its worst flu season since 2017-18, with an estimated 38,000-99,000 related deaths, Centres for Disease Control and Prevention figures showed.
Daily treatment
At the NMC centre in Maysaloon, Dr Lintu Sam, a specialist in family medicine, said 70 per cent of her patients were being seen for respiratory issues.
“Most of the patients I’m seeing every day are presenting with acute respiratory infections,” said Dr Sam. “That usually includes high fever, headache, malaise, cough and muscle pains. Mostly, after taking paracetamol or an antibiotic, the temperature goes down.
“But the minute that is over, the temperature spikes up again, which is not something we typically see.
“Patients are saying that they're having very severe fatigue, and severe body pains so the flu this year is presenting differently, with people having fever with gastrointestinal issues like diarrhoea and vomiting.
“If I see around 10 patients a day, around seven of them will be having some kind of kind of respiratory infection. If you have the symptoms, please get treatment early as it can lead to increased respiratory infections, and pneumonia, which we are already seeing.”
Lowest Test scores
26 - New Zealand v England at Auckland, March 1955
30 - South Africa v England at Port Elizabeth, Feb 1896
30 - South Africa v England at Birmingham, June 1924
35 - South Africa v England at Cape Town, April 1899
36 - South Africa v Australia at Melbourne, Feb. 1932
36 - Australia v England at Birmingham, May 1902
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42 - Australia v England in Sydney, Feb. 1888
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"They see their tomorrows slipping out of their reach. And though it seems to them that everything outside this reality is heaven, yet they do not want to go to that heaven. They stay, because they are afflicted with hope." - Mahmoud Darwish, to attendees of the Palestine Festival of Literature, 2008
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By Ben Okri (Head of Zeus)
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Starring: Lamar Faden, Khairiah Nathmy, Nawaf Al-Dhufairy
Director: Shahad Ameen
Rating: 3/5
Types of bank fraud
1) Phishing
Fraudsters send an unsolicited email that appears to be from a financial institution or online retailer. The hoax email requests that you provide sensitive information, often by clicking on to a link leading to a fake website.
2) Smishing
The SMS equivalent of phishing. Fraudsters falsify the telephone number through “text spoofing,” so that it appears to be a genuine text from the bank.
3) Vishing
The telephone equivalent of phishing and smishing. Fraudsters may pose as bank staff, police or government officials. They may persuade the consumer to transfer money or divulge personal information.
4) SIM swap
Fraudsters duplicate the SIM of your mobile number without your knowledge or authorisation, allowing them to conduct financial transactions with your bank.
5) Identity theft
Someone illegally obtains your confidential information, through various ways, such as theft of your wallet, bank and utility bill statements, computer intrusion and social networks.
6) Prize scams
Fraudsters claiming to be authorised representatives from well-known organisations (such as Etisalat, du, Dubai Shopping Festival, Expo2020, Lulu Hypermarket etc) contact victims to tell them they have won a cash prize and request them to share confidential banking details to transfer the prize money.
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Cinco in numbers
Dh3.7 million
The estimated cost of Victoria Swarovski’s gem-encrusted Michael Cinco wedding gown
46
The number, in kilograms, that Swarovski’s wedding gown weighed.
1,000
The hours it took to create Cinco’s vermillion petal gown, as seen in his atelier [note, is the one he’s playing with in the corner of a room]
50
How many looks Cinco has created in a new collection to celebrate Ballet Philippines’ 50th birthday
3,000
The hours needed to create the butterfly gown worn by Aishwarya Rai to the 2018 Cannes Film Festival.
1.1 million
The number of followers that Michael Cinco’s Instagram account has garnered.
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The years Ramadan fell in May
The distance learning plan
Spring break will be from March 8 - 19
Public school pupils will undergo distance learning from March 22 - April 2. School hours will be 8.30am to 1.30pm
Staff will be trained in distance learning programmes from March 15 - 19
Teaching hours will be 8am to 2pm during distance learning
Pupils will return to school for normal lessons from April 5
How much do leading UAE’s UK curriculum schools charge for Year 6?
- Nord Anglia International School (Dubai) – Dh85,032
- Kings School Al Barsha (Dubai) – Dh71,905
- Brighton College Abu Dhabi - Dh68,560
- Jumeirah English Speaking School (Dubai) – Dh59,728
- Gems Wellington International School – Dubai Branch – Dh58,488
- The British School Al Khubairat (Abu Dhabi) - Dh54,170
- Dubai English Speaking School – Dh51,269
*Annual tuition fees covering the 2024/2025 academic year
Pupils in Abu Dhabi are learning the importance of being active, eating well and leading a healthy lifestyle now and throughout adulthood, thanks to a newly launched programme 'Healthy Lifestyle'.
As part of the Healthy Lifestyle programme, specially trained coaches from City Football Schools, along with Healthpoint physicians have visited schools throughout Abu Dhabi to give fun and interactive lessons on working out regularly, making the right food choices, getting enough sleep and staying hydrated, just like their favourite footballers.
Organised by Manchester City FC and Healthpoint, Manchester City FC’s regional healthcare partner and part of Mubadala’s healthcare network, the ‘Healthy Lifestyle’ programme will visit 15 schools, meeting around 1,000 youngsters over the next five months.
Designed to give pupils all the information they need to improve their diet and fitness habits at home, at school and as they grow up, coaches from City Football Schools will work alongside teachers to lead the youngsters through a series of fun, creative and educational classes as well as activities, including playing football and other games.
Dr Mai Ahmed Al Jaber, head of public health at Healthpoint, said: “The programme has different aspects - diet, exercise, sleep and mental well-being. By having a focus on each of those and delivering information in a way that children can absorb easily it can help to address childhood obesity."
Benefits of first-time home buyers' scheme
- Priority access to new homes from participating developers
- Discounts on sales price of off-plan units
- Flexible payment plans from developers
- Mortgages with better interest rates, faster approval times and reduced fees
- DLD registration fee can be paid through banks or credit cards at zero interest rates
UAE currency: the story behind the money in your pockets
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Sarfira
Director: Sudha Kongara Prasad
Starring: Akshay Kumar, Radhika Madan, Paresh Rawal
Rating: 2/5
Normcore explained
Something of a fashion anomaly, normcore is essentially a celebration of the unremarkable. The term was first popularised by an article in New York magazine in 2014 and has been dubbed “ugly”, “bland’ and "anti-style" by fashion writers. It’s hallmarks are comfort, a lack of pretentiousness and neutrality – it is a trend for those who would rather not stand out from the crowd. For the most part, the style is unisex, favouring loose silhouettes, thrift-shop threads, baseball caps and boyish trainers. It is important to note that normcore is not synonymous with cheapness or low quality; there are high-fashion brands, including Parisian label Vetements, that specialise in this style. Embraced by fashion-forward street-style stars around the globe, it’s uptake in the UAE has been relatively slow.
'Worse than a prison sentence'
Marie Byrne, a counsellor who volunteers at the UAE government's mental health crisis helpline, said the ordeal the crew had been through would take time to overcome.
“It was worse than a prison sentence, where at least someone can deal with a set amount of time incarcerated," she said.
“They were living in perpetual mystery as to how their futures would pan out, and what that would be.
“Because of coronavirus, the world is very different now to the one they left, that will also have an impact.
“It will not fully register until they are on dry land. Some have not seen their young children grow up while others will have to rebuild relationships.
“It will be a challenge mentally, and to find other work to support their families as they have been out of circulation for so long. Hopefully they will get the care they need when they get home.”
Who was Alfred Nobel?
The Nobel Prize was created by wealthy Swedish chemist and entrepreneur Alfred Nobel.
- In his will he dictated that the bulk of his estate should be used to fund "prizes to those who, during the preceding year, have conferred the greatest benefit to humankind".
- Nobel is best known as the inventor of dynamite, but also wrote poetry and drama and could speak Russian, French, English and German by the age of 17. The five original prize categories reflect the interests closest to his heart.
- Nobel died in 1896 but it took until 1901, following a legal battle over his will, before the first prizes were awarded.
