Cambodian Well being Authorities confirmed the primary case of chicken flu in people, since 2014. An 11-year-old lady fell ailing on February 16 and was rushed to hospital within the capital Phnom Penh, after experiencing fever, cough, sore throat.
Not lengthy after, he died. Quoted from Sky Information, native officers took samples of lifeless birds across the lady’s residence space. Whereas warning native residents to not make contact with lifeless and sick birds.
Chicken flu is often unfold by way of poultry, and was not thought-about a menace to people till the 1997 outbreak in Hong Kong, with most human circumstances involving direct contact with contaminated birds.
Nonetheless, there are issues that the virus may evolve or mutate in order that it spreads extra simply between people.
Mam Bunheng, Cambodia’s Minister of Well being, mentioned that bird flu is a selected menace to kids, who could also be used to accumulating eggs from home birds or taking part in with birds and cleansing their cages.
Signs of the flu, formally often known as H5N1, are just like these of different flu, together with cough, aches and fever. In some circumstances, it causes life-threatening pneumonia.
Between 2003 and 2014, Cambodia had 56 circumstances of H5N1, 37 of which have been deadly, in response to the World Well being Group (WHO). In whole, 870 folks worldwide have been contaminated, and 457 deaths have been reported in 21 international locations.
However up to now seven years, the tempo has slowed, with solely about 170 infections and 50 deaths.
WHO Director-Basic Tedros Adhanom Ghebreyesus not too long ago expressed concern about avian influenza in mammals, warning: “H5N1 has been widespread in wild birds and poultry for 25 years, however current transmissions to mammals should be carefully monitored.”
He added that WHO nonetheless assesses the chance of chicken flu in people continues to be low.
“However we can’t assume that it’ll nonetheless occur, and we have to be ready for any change in (pandemic) standing,” he mentioned.
He suggested folks to not contact lifeless or sick wild animals, and for international locations to strengthen their controls over settings the place people and animals work together.
Leave a Reply