Another Bird Flu Suspect Found In Thailand

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Another bird flu suspect found in Thailand

BANGKOK: -- A new patient suspected to have been infected with the H5N1 bird flu virus was reported in Thailand's northeastern province of Nakhon Ratchasima, or Korat, according to a senior Public Health Ministry official.

M. D. Thawat Suntrajarn, Deputy Permanent Secretary for Public Health, and Director of the Bird Flu Command Center, was quoted bythe Thai News Agency Friday as saying that the new suspected patient was a 16-month-old baby.

"Laboratory tests, conducted by the Department of Medical Sciences, showed that the baby boy has been infected with influenza since late last month, and doctors have kept a close watch on him to see whether he was infected with the avian flu," he stated.

"The baby patient is reportedly recovering well," he added.

The new bird flu suspect was reported to have played with chickens raised by a neighbor of his family, said M. D. Thawat.

The last bird flu suspect, reported to the Ministry of Public Health last Saturday, was also found in Nakhon Ratchasima, M. D. Thawat disclosed, adding the patient had constantly recovered.

As of March 5, the number of bird flu suspected cases in Thailand has remained at 21, as a 67-year-old suspected patient from the central province of Chai Nat was removed from the center's list of suspects after laboratory tests confirmed that she had not been infected with the H5N1 virus, according to M. D. Thawat.

"Among the 21 bird flu suspected patients, seven have died and two more have still been hospitalized. Twelve of them have fully recovered," he said.

"The number of confirmed bird flu cases in the country, on the other had, has stood at 10 since December 2003 with seven deaths and the rest three having fully recovered," disclosed the senior public health official.

Source: Agencies