Bird flu: WHO rules out man-to-man infection
Hanoi (AsiaNews/Agencies) The World Health Organization (WHO) has confirmed today that a 23 year-old Vietnamese woman, who died of the bird flu, was not infected by her sister, also deceased after contracting the disease.
For the time being the risk of viral transmission between humans has been ruled out. Experts say that such transmission the disease would lead to a worldwide outbreak.
Today in Thailand Charal Trinwuthipong, head of the Department of Disease Control, confirmed that a 13 year-old girl who checked into a hospital on Jan. 29, is the country's sixth case of human infection. Meanwhile, after three migratory birds tested positive for the virus, all such infected birds are being culled.
Vietnam and Thailand have been the worst hit countries to date.
Yesterday Vietnamese authorities confirmed the infection of man, age 22, now being treated in Ho Chi Minh City. In Vietnam there are now 20 confirmed cases of infection and a toll of 14 victims.
In Thailand 5 people have died so far, 4 of whom were children and a 58 year-old woman. Vietnamese officials say that virus's acute stage is over. Yet according to WHO representative Pascale Brudon in Hanoi, the situation is still not under control, since the virus continues to spread among chickens and new cases of human infection are occurring every day.
WHO experts still consider the bird flu to be an emergency. They expect more cases of human infection to appear in countries other than Vietnam and Thailand. Peter Roeder, a FAO animal health department official in Geneva, said that possibly 2 years not 6 months as originally believed would be necessary to bring the situation back to normal in the region.
Meanwhile in China the country's health minister assured citizens that the Center for Disease Control and Prevention would receive updated healthcare emergency figures from provinces. Previously, the WHO accused China for its lack of sharing information with the international community regarding the spread of Sars and the bird flu virus. On Tuesday, Feb. 10, the WHO criticized countries hit by the virus for having placed economic interests above those of human health. (MR)
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17/08/2004
28/01/2004
17/01/2004
