Hanoi (VNA) – Director of the Ministry of Health’s Department of Preventive Medicine and Environment Nguyen Huy Nga on Jan. 6 confirmed that the first new case of avian influenza type A/H5 since last March had been discovered in Thanh Hoa province.
on Jan. 2, an 8-year-old girl living in Dien Trung Commune, Ba Thuoc District was hospitalized with such symptoms as fever, cough, sore throat and difficult breathing.
“Results of the National Institute of Hygiene and Epidemiology (NIHE) laboratory tests on Jan. 3 show positive for avian influenza type of A/H5,” said Nga.
“At the moment, the girl is recovering,” he added.
An epidemiological investigation revealed that the girl and her family ate diseased birds a week ago. Other fowls have been falling sick and dying in the area.
The department proposed that NIHE and Thanh Hoa’s Preventive Medicine and Environment Department should quarantine the area and send staff to handle the outbreak.
It also recommended people should not eat sick chickens and report all dead or sick birds to local authorities. They should also only eat cooked food, drink water that has been boiled and wash their hands frequently with soap.
According to health ministry’s statistics, Vietnam has had a total of 107 type A/H5N1 positive cases since December 2003, of which 52 proved fatal.
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