Bird Flu Center

After becoming the world’ worst hit country by avian influenza last week, when two new patients died and brought the total victim count to 44, Indonesia records yet another case. A 17 year old teenager from West Java’s Garut district, an isolated area of Indonesia, was diagnosed with avian influenza, but is refusing treatment at a special hospital designated for such cases. Laboratory tests have confirmed the suspicion, but the young man’s refusal to be treated is typical to the level of understanding local inhabitants have about the virus. The strain of the virus in question is H5N1, the most dangerous one. The man had been in contact with dead chickens in the vicinity of his house and subsequently became ill. Samples from relatives and close neighbours have also been collected to test for any transmission of the virus, while culling of birds in the area will be conducted soon.