Bird Flu Center

The sister of a boy that had previously died of bird flu earlier this month has now tested positive for the H5N1 virus. She is believed to have contracted the disease after coming into contact with sick and dead birds, as her brother. The 21 year old woman is now being treated at a hospital in the East Java province. Official laboratory testing have confirmed the initial diagnosis on the patient and the case is now worrying as it might signal a possible cluster in the woman’s family (a transmission of the virus from person to person). The woman is suffering from pneumonia as well and although her condition is stable at the moment, her state has not recorded a significant improvement, with the patient still being assisted by a respirator. Although so far human infections with the avian influenza virus were due mainly to direct contact with birds, cases such as this one raise fears that the virus has mutated to a form that can be passed on from person to person.