Government assigns medical team to combat bird flu

Eva C. Komandjaja and Wahyoe Boedhiwardana, The Jakarta Post, Jakarta/Bali

The government has asked the team previously tasked with making preparations to deal with an outbreak of Severe Acute Respiratory Syndrome (SARS) to take all necessary measures to prevent the spread of bird flu to humans.

A team of medical experts from the Ministry of Health, meanwhile, made a preliminary finding that Kadek Heri Darman, a 3.5-year-old boy suspected of being infected with bird flu, was actually suffering from a common acute respiratory infection.

Director of Communicable Diseases Umar Fahmi told The Jakarta Post that the health ministry would hold a meeting with the SARS team on Friday to discuss the steps the government would take to prevent the spread of bird flu to humans.

"Members of the SARS team are already prepared for the bird flu outbreak," said Umar.

He added that World Health Organization (WHO) officials had been invited to the meeting on Friday, which would decide on the strategy and division of duties among the team members.

The government has claimed that no cases of bird flu infection in humans have been found in Indonesia. It was finally acknowledged by the government on Sunday that the country had actually long been in the throes of an outbreak of the virus.

The health ministry team took blood samples of the Balinese toddler, Heri, for laboratory tests at Tabanan hospital.

According to the Bali provincial health agency, no other suspicious cases have been found so far. The agency has appointed Sanglah hospital in the provincial capital of Denpasar to provide medical treatment to any people who might become infected by bird flu.

At least eight people have been killed by the virus across Asia.

WHO representative Georg Peterson told the Post on Thursday that his organization was ready to provide assistance to the Indonesian government in handling the outbreak.

"We are still working together with the Indonesian government on the handling of bird flu. Currently, we are holding regular daily meetings with the Ministry of Health and the animal husbandry office," Peterson said.

He added that WHO would offer technical assistance and equipment, such as laboratory kits, to the Indonesian government, but could not afford to provide financial aid.

The government has designated the Suliyanti Saroso Hospital for Infectious Diseases in Sunter, North Jakarta, and many other hospitals in poultry breeding areas, to treat patients displaying bird flu symptoms.

Gindo M. Simanjuntak, an epidemiologist with the National Institute of Health Research and Development, said the government had also alerted doctors to keep a watchful eye out for patients displaying bird flu symptoms, which are quite similar to pneumonia.

"If a doctor finds a case where a patient is suffering from a fever and bad cough, he should be careful as it might be bird flu," he said.

Symptoms of bird flu in humans include high fever, muscle ache, sore throat, cough, eye infection and acute respiratory distress.

So far there is no cure for the disease. WHO has confirmed that the vaccine developed during the bird flu outbreak in Hong Kong in 1997 cannot be used as the current outbreak is caused by different strains.

WHO has also announced that the virus is resistant to cheap antiviral drugs such as amantadine and rimantadine, which are used to treat regular influenza.