MANILA, Philippines?Eleven more cases of the Influenza A(H1N1) virus were confirmed Tuesday, including seven college and three high school students, bringing the total number of confirmed cases to 57.

Six of the new swine flu cases are students of De La Salle University on Taft Avenue in Manila, bringing to 13 the total number of confirmed cases among DLSU students, while another is the first confirmed case from the nearby campus of De La Salle-College of St. Benilde.

?These new cases are also like the previous ones that are mild in nature, very similar to the cases seen in other affected countries,? Health Secretary Francisco Duque III said.

He added that all new cases were responding positively to medical treatment.

Duque announced eight new confirmed cases?seven Filipinos and a foreigner. Four are males and four are females ranging in age from 16 to 44. Two of them, including one at DLSU, recently traveled to the United States.

Ateneo suspends classes

Ateneo de Manila University also announced Tuesday evening that three students had tested positive for the virus, prompting the suspension of classes for 10 days. Classes will resume on June 22.

Fr. Raymund-Benedict Q. Hizon, Ateneo High School principal, said on its website that the three cases were mild and the infected boys were already feeling better and advised to rest at home and continue their self-quarantine with no need for hospitalization.

Duque said the Department of Health (DoH) expected to turn up more confirmed cases in the coming days because of ?aggressive contact tracing??tracking down persons who have come into contact with earlier confirmed cases.

He stressed though that there was no more need to suspend classes despite a confirmed case in a school, but he recommended that persons with flu symptoms such as fever, cough or sore throat should be isolated at home.

But persons with pre-existing conditions like diabetes, asthma, chronic obstructive pulmonary disease, heart disease as well as the pregnant or immuno-compromised, or the very young (below 5 years old) and elderly must have themselves checked by a doctor immediately if they manifest flu symptoms.

On Tuesday, a student of Far Eastern University-East Asia College also tested positive for the swine flu virus.

Containment to mitigation

Duque said there was also no need to suspend operations in case of a confirmed or suspected case in the workplace, but asked offices to immediately notify the DoH about these cases.

?We repeat that there is no need to wear masks, quarantine entire rooms or floors and suspend business activities. I reiterate, however, that all businesses should have a contingency plan to ensure the continuity of their operations,? he stressed.

Duque announced that the DoH had started to implement a strategy of mitigation rather than containment as it phased down contact-tracing activities.

He said he had discussed the planned shift from containment to mitigation with World Health Organization (WHO) technical adviser Dr. Hiroshi Oshitani.

?We also talked about the country?s surveillance capabilities, laboratory capacity and other measures such as school closures and contact-tracing to mitigate the effects of A(H1N1),? he said.

Duque has said that the flu virus was being transmitted much faster than the DoH could track down all potential infected contacts anyway.

How virus spreads

The virus spreads when an infected person who coughs or sneezes releases respiratory droplets that are inhaled by another person, or when a person touches an infected surface and then brings his hand to his mouth or hand.

Duque said that like in other affected countries, suspected patients would just be treated as they turn up in health facilities.

Only those who have flu-like symptoms and have either recently traveled to affected countries or were known to have been in close contact of confirmed cases would be given free testing and treatment in DoH referral hospitals.

Bacolod, Lucena cases

In Bacolod City, an Indian national who arrived from Hong Kong four days ago was placed under observation Tuesday at the Corazon Locsin Montelibano Memorial Regional Hospital for possible swine flu infection.

Negros Occidental Gov. Isidro Zayco said that he had ordered provincial health officer Dr. Luisa Efren to monitor the case. Efren said a swab sample from the patient, who is in his 40s, had been sent to the Research Institute for Tropical Medicine in Muntinlupa City for testing.

She added that her office has been tracing the persons who were in contact with the Indian as a precaution.

In Lucena City, a foreigner has been on a self-imposed quarantine after showing symptoms of swine flu infection, said Dr. Wilfredo Frondoza, city health officer.

He also said that a woman and her grandchild who recently arrived from Dubai and were suspected of having the virus had been cleared after tests done by the institute proved negative. With reports from Carla P. Gomez, Inquirer Visayas, and Delfin T. Mallari Jr., Inquirer Southern Luzon