# 1833
Proof once again how difficult it can be to differentiate between bird flu and other viral infections. This case, which looked suspiciously like bird flu, turned out to be acute pneumonia instead.
Vietnamese man died of pneumonia, not bird flu
A man who died in Ho Chi Minh City on Wednesday was not infected with the H5N1 virus, or bird flu, as was previously suspected.
The director of the city’s Pasteur Institute announced Thursday that the cause of death was, in fact, acute pneumonia.
The patient was hospitalized in Pham Ngoc Thach Hospital Tuesday with breathing difficulties, a cough and high fever, symptoms similar to those of avian influenza.
The death was under suspicion since the deceased’s family in the central province of Nghe An said there had been a bird flu outbreak in the province two months ago.
According to the institute, however, the patient’s immune system had been weakened by a pre-existing kidney condition that led to pneumonia.
