Health centres in some Nunavut communities are seeing only urgent cases of swine flu, health officials say. (CBC)

The number of lab-confirmed swine flu cases in Nunavut reached 496 on Wednesday, with a growing number of infections now coming from the territory's Baffin region.

Nunavut health officials say 31 infections from the H1N1 virus have been reported in the past seven days. However, the number of actual cases is likely much higher, since not everyone who has been sick has been tested.

Since swine flu was first confirmed in Nunavut in May, most of the cases have come from communities in the Kivalliq and Kitikmeot regions, both west of Baffin Island.

"Most of the activity now is in the Baffin region," Dr. Geraldine Osborne, the territory's deputy chief medical officer, said Wednesday. "The other two regions are reasonably quiet. There's a little bit of activity, but nothing compared to a few weeks ago.

"So the virus has moved across to the east."

Currently, 53 per cent of the territory's swine flu cases have come from the Kivalliq Region, while 30 per cent come from the Kitikmeot region and 17 per cent are from the Baffin region.

Osborne said there are two patients from Nunavut who are in hospital with the virus, while a third is in intensive care at a hospital outside the territory. She would not give details about those patients or their conditions.

Nunavut reported one death from the H1N1 virus last month.

Up until this week, health officials have been reluctant to identify which communities have been affected by swine flu, but Osborne said the H1N1 virus has hit almost every community by now, with the exception of a few High Arctic hamlets.

Most communities affected

"I think initially, when the virus wasn't widespread, we didn't particularly want to stigmatize any particular community. But now that the virus is widespread, you know, practically every community in Nunavut has been affected," she said.

"All the communities in the Kitikmeot [region] and the Kivalliq region saw H1N1, and currently in the Baffin region most of the communities have H1N1. There's about four communities that haven't reported any cases yet, and they're mainly in the High Arctic."

In some affected communities, health care staff are seeing only urgent cases of swine flu, Osborne said.

Still, she urged anyone with underlying illnesses or who is pregnant to see a nurse or doctor if they have flu-like symptoms. Underlying illnesses include heart disease, lung disease, diabetes or cancer.

As well, those who have the flu and are feeling worse should contact their local health centre.

"Don't feel you can't go to the health centre, because these are people that need to be seen," she said.