LIMA - PERU on Sunday reported its first two swine flu fatalities and Uruguay and Paraguay saw their death tolls rise, as South America grappled with mounting cases and measures to contain the spread of the virus.

The American continent remains the world region worst affected by the A(H1N1) flu virus, which first appeared in Mexico in late April.

The virus, declared a global pandemic last month by the World Health Organisation, has infected 89,921 people in 125 countries and territories and caused 382 deaths worldwide, according to the latest World Health Organization (WHO) figures.

But concerns have risen in South America in recent days, following the Argentine Health Ministry's estimate that some 100,000 people have contracted the A(H1N1) virus since the first case was discovered in the country in May.

Fifty-five people have died of swine flu there, but the ministry said 95 per cent of those who were infected with the virus have recovered.

Peruvian Health Minister Oscar Ugarte said a 38-year-old woman died Friday after checking into a Lima hospital with pneumonia on June 29, when tests confirmed she had contracted the virus.

'She received standard antiviral treatment but unfortunately she died,' Mr Ugarte said.

The second death was of a four-year-old girl who had Down Syndrome and was admitted to hospital with severe respiratory problems. She died June 28, but laboratory results of her infection were confirmed only recently, Ugarte said.

The Andean nation has confirmed more than 810 A(H1N1) infections and has become the seventh South American country to report deaths linked to the virus.

The region, currently in the grips of winter, is being closely watched by health experts as it could be a harbinger of things to come north of the equator, when North America, Europe and much of Asia enter their winter at the end of the year. -- AFP