Health Authorities Still Search for Cause in Bird Flu Death
Posted by Unknown in Animal Health, Bird Flu, Chicken, Poultry on Friday, 25 January 2013
(Xinhua)
-- Health authorities in south Guangdong province have yet to find the
cause of the highly pathogenic H5N1 virus, commonly known as bird flu,
that led to the death of a bus driver, a local disease control official
said Sunday.
The
39-year-old man surnamed Chen in Bao'an district of Shenzhen was
hospitalized for fever on Dec. 21 and tested positive for the H5N1 avian
influenza virus. He died of multiple organ failure Saturday afternoon,
the Guangdong Health Department said in a statement.
The
department also said that during the previous month prior to his fever,
he had no direct contact with poultry and hadn't traveled out of the
city.
Chen's
wife said he had a habit of doing morning exercises every day near a
wetland park and an artificial lake not far from his home, but "no proof
has been found that his infection is connected with the migratory birds
there," He Jianfeng, director of the Epidemics Studies Institute of the
Guangdong Disease Control Center, said Sunday.
"We also don't know whether he had eaten poultry before he fell ill," He said.
He said contacts with poultry and migratory birds are two ways for humans to be infected with bird flu.
"But
Chen had been in coma after being hospitalized, so we couldn't inquire
about what birds or poultry he may have had contact with," he said.
The
General Administration of Quality Supervision, Inspection and
Quarantine (AQSIQ) on Dec. 22 suspended supplies of live poultry to Hong
Kong after a dead chicken tested positive in Hong Kong for the highly
pathogenic H5N1 virus.
The
AQSIQ said it would maintain close contact and work together with the
Hong Kong Special Administrative Region (HKSAR) to jointly step up
measures to control the epidemic.
The
Guangdong Department of Agriculture announced Saturday that no epidemic
of bird flu among poultry had been reported in the province.
Chen's
wife said he had asked for sick leave and stayed at home five days
before he was sent to hospital due to an ankle injury. While she
prepared his dinners, she didn't know what he had been eating for lunch.
Hong
Kong media reports have quoted one of Chen's friends as saying that
Chen had slaughtered a chicken to cook for others, but He Jianfeng
doesn't think that was the cause of his death.
"That took place a month ago. It cannot be the reason. The latent period of bird flu virus doesn't last that long," he said.
He advised locals against panicking, saying no proof has been found to show that bird flu virus can be spread among humans.
"By
Jan. 1, among the 120 people who had close contact with Chen, including
his wife, colleagues and medical workers, no one has shown any
symptoms," he added.
Also
on Sunday, the Shenzhen Municipal Entry-Exit Inspection and Quarantine
Bureau announced it had commenced 24-hour monitoring at all ports during
the ongoing three-day New Year holiday to enhance health inspection of
overseas visitors and guard against possible health incidents.
