# 2933
Yesterday I blogged on two local media reports from Indonesia (see Suspect Cases In Indonesia) that described 3 suspected bird flu cases, one in Riau and two in Garut. Today Ida at the Bird Flu Information Corner (BFIC) has some additional details, and we have new media coverage as well.
It should be noted at the forefront, however, that we’ve received no notification of any test results. These are, for now, only suspect H5N1 infections.
Ida’s first report is on the 2 –year-old from Riau, identified as IS. Riau has often been the site of bird flu outbreaks in Poultry, and has been a hotspot for human infections as well.
Pekan Baru, Riau ::: 2-year-old boy bird flu suspect
March 25, 2009Pekan Baru, Riau – IS, 2-year-old boy is suspected to have bird flu infection. He’s now under treatment and monitored at Arifin Achmad hospital, Pekan Baru, Tuesday (24/3). Patient is still under intensive treatment until the sample result issued by Indonesia Health Ministry Laboratory.
Source: Indonesia local newspaper, Surya.
===AvianInfluenzaIndonesia===
The Jakarta Post this morning also has an article on this suspect case, which indicates that IS has just recently been transferred to Arifin Achmad Hospital because they are equipped to deal with `bird flu’.
Wednesday, March 25, 2009 5:41 PM
Pekanbaru hospital treats bird flu suspect
Wed, 03/25/2009 1:09 PM | The Archipelago
PEKANBARU, Riau: A two-and-a-half year old bird flu suspect has been referred to Arifin Achmad General Hospital in Pekanbaru after receiving several days of treatment at Ibnu Sina Hospital.
Arifin Achmad Hospital's bird flu response team coordinator Azizman Saad said the patient, Wahyu Ibnu Saputra, had to be referred to his hospital because the symptoms of bird flu he displayed - high fever, breathing difficulties and coughing - had not abated.
"Not only did his fever reach 40 degrees Celsius when he arrived at the hospital, but he also displayed all the signs of someone suffering from bird flu. Preliminary tests also showed a high amount of liquid in his lungs. The patient is still being treated at the bird flu isolation ward and still holds the status of suspect," Azizman told The Jakarta Post on Tuesday.
The hospital has sent liquid and blood samples to the Health Ministry's Medical Health and Development Center in Jakarta. – JP
The second report comes from Garut, where a pair of siblings are suspected of having the H5N1 virus.
Garut, West Java ::: Siblings suspected bird flu patients
March 25, 2009
Garut, West Java – Siblings, Ikah (35) and Aning (30), residents of Kecamatan Cigedug Kabupaten Garut suspected to be infected by avian influenza (AI) virus or bird flu. Until today noon (25/3), they both are still under treatment at dr Slamet hospital, Garut.
Ikah and Aning arrived at dr Slamet hospital, Monday (23/3) around 10 am. At that moment they showed severe bird flu-like symptoms such as, severe flu, breathing difficulty, high fever, and other symptoms in hands and legs such as quivering and impairment.
According to Madjid (34), before they were admitted to hospital, Ikah and Aning were treated at general clinic in their village around 4 am. The doctor, dr Jonah said patients should be treated by specialist since they were showing bird flu-like symptoms.
Madjid explained that about a week ago, their neighbor’s chickens suddenly died. After that some people within the neighborhood developed breathing problem sign but not as severe as Ikah and Aning.
While this flurry of reports is suggestive of genuine H5N1 cases, we’ve seen such reports before that never ended up being confirmed. There are other, less exotic, pathogens perfectly capable of producing these symptoms.
We’ll simply have to wait for test results, and then have to hope that the Indonesian government releases them.
In the mean time, a big hat tip to The Bird Flu Information Corner for finding, and translating these reports.
The BFIC is a joint endeavor between Kobe University, Japan and Institute of Tropical Disease, Airlangga University, Indonesia.
