February 12, 2004

Cambodia May Be Third Country With Human Bird Flu Cases

Cambodia may be the third country listed as having human bird flu cases, after Vietnam and Thailand, following completion of the test results on a dead chicken hawker, agency spokesman Peter Cordingley said.

A 25-year-old pregnant Cambodian woman from a village in Takeo province, near the border with Vietnam, first showed symptoms of the disease Feb. 1. She was transferred to a Vietnamese hospital Feb. 4 and died there on Feb. 5, Cordingley said. The tests are taking place in Vietnam.

"We initially thought no samples were taken," Cordingley said in a phone interview from Manila. "It seems that samples were in fact taken, and they've gone to the Pasteur Institute in Ho Chi Minh City for testing, but we have no results yet."

In the event the tests confirm the woman had the H5N1 strain of bird flu, Cambodia will be the third country after Vietnam and Thailand to report a human case. Vietnam has had 18 infections and Thailand five, according to the United Nations health agency.

The WHO is still awaiting formal notification from Vietnam's health ministry of a 14th death in the country reported by hospital and research institute employees, Cordingley said. The agency has confirmed five fatalities in Thailand.