WHO confirms RI's new bird flu case<\/p>\n
The Jakarta Post, Jakarta<\/p>\n
A 21-year-old man hospitalized in Lampung was declared by the
\nWorld Health Organization (WHO) as the country's latest confirmed
\nbird flu case, a senior government official said on Monday.<\/p>\n
Director general of disease control of the Ministry of Health
\nI Nyoman Kandun said that the man's four-year-old nephew who had
\ndied earlier tested positive in preliminary tests by the ministry
\nfor the H5N1 bird flu virus, but the government was still
\nawaiting confirmation from the WHO laboratory in Hong Kong.<\/p>\n
Kandun said that the man was now being treated at the Abdul
\nMoeloek Hospital in Lampung.<\/p>\n
Initial investigations revealed that the man might have
\ncontracted the virus from dead chickens in his neighborhood.<\/p>\n
Based on the WHO test results, there ware now five confirmed
\ncases of bird flu in Indonesia, of which three -- Iwan Siswara,
\nRini Dina, and Karwati -- had died.<\/p>\n
The WHO fears the H5N1 virus may mutate, acquiring genes from
\nthe human influenza virus that would make it highly infectious as
\nwell as lethal -- possibly killing millions worldwide as the
\ninfluenza pandemic of 1918 did.<\/p>\n
Meanwhile, the Sulianti Saroso Hospital, which is among the 44
\nhospitals across the country assigned by the government to treat
\nbird flu patients, on Monday discharged seven patients after a
\nseries of tests showed that they were not infected by the virus.<\/p>\n
They were previously admitted to the hospital after showing
\nsymptoms of bird flu.<\/p>\n
\"The seven patients, six children and one adult, will leave
\nthe hospital today after their test results were negative,\" said
\nhospital spokesman Ilham Putu as quoted by Antara.<\/p>\n
He added that the hospital was now treating eight other
\npatients, whose conditions \"are improving and stable\" after
\npreviously suffering from high fevers and other bird flu-like
\nsymptoms.<\/p>",
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