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| Southeast Asia |
| Vietnam Reports Two Cases Of Bird Flu in Humans |
| 2005-06-20 |
| HANOI, Vietnam --Two more people from northern Vietnam have been sickened with bird flu while thousands of chickens have died in the south -- in the country's first new outbreak among poultry in three months, officials said Monday. The two newest victims tested positive for the virus after being admitted to Bach Mai Hospital in Hanoi over the weekend, said hospital director Tran Quy. That brought the number of human cases to 13 over the past two weeks, he said, adding the patients, all from the northern provinces, are in stable condition. Bird flu ravaged poultry farms across Vietnam in late 2003, killing or forcing the demise of more than 45 million birds. The virus began jumping to humans around the same time, and has killed a total of 38 people in Vietnam, 12 in Thailand and four in Cambodia. Meanwhile, more than 4,000 out of 6,700 chickens on a farm in the southern province of Ben Tre died suddenly on June 9, said Mai Van Hiep, director of the provincial animal health bureau. Authorities killed the remaining chickens two days later, and tests showed they were infected with the H5N1 strain of the bird flu. Mr. Hiep added that authorities have disinfected the farm and surrounding areas. So far the majority of human victims have contracted the disease through close contact with sick birds. However, epidemiologists worry that if the H5N1 virus mutates into a form that can be passed directly between people, it could lead to a global influenza pandemic, potentially killing millions. Medical officials say that there has been only one probable case of human-to-human transmission of the bird-flu virus |
| Posted by:too true |
| #4 if VN claims 2, it must be 200 |
| Posted by: Frank G 2005-06-20 19:14 |
| #3 the Institute of Tropical Diseases in Hanoi capital city from June 18-19. Currently, the institute is treating 28 people with bird flu symptoms, of whom 13 have been tested positive to H5N1. The majority reported no contact with domestic animals/birds. |
| Posted by: phil_b 2005-06-20 17:13 |
| #2 I think the human-to-human transition was a long time ago - last year, maybe? |
| Posted by: Bobby 2005-06-20 13:05 |
| #1 And thanks to China, one of only two anti-viral treatments available is no longer effective. Thanks, China! Oops that last para sent a chill up my spine ... there WAS a case of human-to-human transmission? OH my GOD it's the coming of the plague. Seriously! If this thing gets human-to-human transmission we may end up with another SARS on our hands only worse as the vector is avian... and thus impossible to patrol the borders for... I'm stockpiling drugs... |
| Posted by: anon1 2005-06-20 12:55 |