No need to panic over swine flu: Experts

Cheryl Cohen, with the National Institute for Communicable Diseases, says they have been inundated with reports of apparent outbreaks.

"Swine flu is the wrong term, because it actually refers to a disease of pigs. The H1N1 strain is a normal seasonal flu strain that we see in humans -- like all the other seasonal flu strains," explain Cohen.

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A school on Gauteng's West Rand recently closed its doors over worries about an outbreak.

Cohen is asking people not to entertain stories about swine flu outbreaks.

"We aren't really seeing outbreaks of the swine flu strain. Every year in South Africa during the winter season we observe an increase in the influenza circulating."

"This is called the influenza season and it is a normal and expected occurrence," she said.

During this period, the number of people infected with influenza increases, with some patients seeking outpatient care and people be hospitalised. It is also common for clusters of influenza cases in homes and workplaces as people spread the infection to one another.

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The institute says schools are also common sites for cluster infections, as children are important transmitters of influenza and often have close contact to other children within the school environment.

It says this can be expected and should not cause alarm.