BUENOS AIRES - ARGENTINA on Wednesday reported four more swine flu deaths, raising to 21 the number of people who have died with the A(H1N1) virus since it was first confirmed in the South American country in early May.

The health ministry said in a daily update that the number of confirmed H1N1 flu cases rose by nearly 100, to 1,391, while another 967 people suspected of contracting the virus were being tested.

According to the ministry, 20 of the fatalities and 1,191 of the positive cases have occured in or around Buenos Aires, an area with a total of 12.5 million people.

With the southern hemisphere now in winter, the A(H1N1) virus has spread more broadly in Argentina and neighbouring Chile than in most parts of Latin America, making it a closely watched harbinger of the flu season to come in the northern hemisphere.

As Argentina has reported 11 fatalities in the past two days, health officials were raising concerns about the epidemic as the country prepares for Sunday's legislative elections.

Ocana recommended that people who head to the polls keep at least one meter (yard) distance from one another as they wait in line to enter voting booths, and to stay in open and aerated spaces as much as possible.

Swine flu has infected 55,000 people in 109 countries and territories and killed 238 people since late March, according to the World Health Organisation, which on June 11 declared a global H1N1 flu pandemic.

In Brazil, health officials on Wednesday reported 65 new infections, bringing the total confirmed cases there to 399.

They also recommended that young children, the elderly, pregnant women and other people who may be more susceptible to infection postpone travel to parts of the Americas that are hard hit by the virus, including Argentina, Chile, Mexico, Canada and the United States.

In Peru, the number of new confirmed cases rose by 55, to 299 total, health officials there said. -- AFP