Avian influenza, human (152): Indonesia

International Society for Infectious Diseases
<http://www.isid.org>

Source: Reuters Foundation AlertNet, Sun 24 Sep 2006 [edited]
< http://www.alertnet.org/thenews/newsdesk/SP267780.htm>


Indonesia: 51st H5N1 avian influenza death confirmed
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A 9-year-old Indonesian boy has died of avian influenza, an official
of the Health Ministry's Bird Flu Information Centre said on Sunday
[24 Sep 2006], taking the country's death toll from the disease to
51. The boy died on Friday [22 Sep 2006] at a hospital in Jakarta,
Runizar Ruesin, the Head of the Centre, told Reuters by phone. "The
result came out this morning. It has been confirmed positive," he
said.

The boy, a resident of Ciputat Raya in South Jakarta, had suffered
from fever, cough, runny nose and pneumonia after he began to get
sick on Wed 13 Sep 2006, Ruesin said. The boy was said to have had
contact with a sick bird. Most human cases are known to have followed
such contacts.

His death comes after the Health Ministry said on Friday [22 Sep
2006] that bird flu killed an 11-year-old boy from East Java
province. The boy died last week after chickens died around his
house. The Ministry said it was sending a team to investigate the
case.

Indonesia has the highest bird flu death toll of any nation. Not
including the deaths of the 2 boys, the H5N1 avian flu virus has
killed 144 people worldwide, the World Health Organization says. The
virus mainly affects birds, but experts fear it could mutate into a
strain capable of killing millions of people in a global pandemic.
Indonesia has been criticized for not doing enough to combat the
disease, which is endemic in birds in most of the provinces in the
archipelago of 17 000 islands, the world's largest. The United
Nations bird flu coordinator, David Nabarro, said this month
[September 2006] that Indonesia had made progress in its fight
against bird flu. But he expressed disappointment at the slow flow of
funds pledged by international donors to Indonesia for the effort.

The death of this boy from South Jakarta raises the number of
confirmed human cases of H5N1 avian influenza in Indonesia to 67 and
the death toll to 51. The global number of human cases of H5N1 avian
influenza now becomes 249, and the global death toll is raised to
146. Official WHO confirmation is awaited.

ProMED-mail acknowledges receipt of an identical report from Dr.
Joseph P. Dudley <joseph.p.dudley@saic.com>.