# 2476
After a flurry of media reports late last week regarding the 17 suspected bird flu cases in Makassar, Indonesia, we've been waiting on laboratory tests to see if they are really infected with the H5N1 virus.
Today we get an update via the Jakarta Post, which indicates the 17 patients remain in isolation, although all are reportedly in good condition.
Official test results have still not been relayed from the laboratory in Jakarta, but hospital officials are `optimistic they are not infected by the virus'.
Yesterday, at least one local media source reported that the test results had come back negative.
Given the 80% fatality rate among known H5N1 cases in Indonesia to date, having 17 of 17 patients exhibit a rapid recovery would be a remarkable occurrence were they indeed infected with the avian flu virus.
Confusion remains over the report last week that a number of these patients initially tested positive for the H5N1 virus in local `urgent tests'. The type of test was never divulged, and it is possible that reporters misinterpreted the results of a rapid influenza test, which would not have shown the strain of flu.
This case, however it turns out, highlights the problem with Indonesia's ongoing refusal to acknowledge human H5N1 infections as they occur.
If their stated policy is not to confirm human cases, then any announcement of negative test results (even if true) becomes suspect.
Last week's declaration by Health Minister Supari that a 15-year-old girl had not died from the H5N1 virus, after several other sources had already confirmed her case, does little to bolster confidence in `official statements' coming from the Health Ministry.
This from the Jakarta Post.
Wednesday, November 19, 2008 8:05 PM
S. Sulawesi establishes bird flu commission
Andi Hajramurni , The Jakarta Post , Makassar |
Wed, 11/19/2008 10:47 AM | Headlines
The South Sulawesi administration on Tuesday inaugurated a provincial Bird Flu Control and Handling Commission, as it bids to stop the spread of the virus.
Speaking in the provincial capital Makassar, Governor Syahrul Yasin Limpo, who appointed the commission's 51 members, said bird flu had spread widely across the province, with a new case detected last week in Makassar's Sudiang subdistrict.
He added because it was difficult to track the virus, the province had drawn up preventive actions to stop the virus from infecting more people.
"Bird flu is a dangerous disease, especially if it spreads between humans. It can cause many deaths," he said.
"Therefore we have to involve all components of society in our efforts at prevention. I hope the commission will help in disseminating more information on bird flu."
The commission will be actively involved in prevention and handling during emergency situations, and up to a recovery period.
The new measures stipulate that once a bird flu case is detected, all poultry in the affected area must be culled and the area sealed off. Any residents showing symptoms of the disease must be taken to the nearest community health center (Puskesmas) and treated at a designated hospital.
Separately, South Sulawesi Health Agency head Rachmat Latief disclosed 17 patients suspected of being infected with the virus were in better condition after a 6-day intensive treatment at Wahidin Sudirohusodo General Hospital.
However, they are not yet allowed to return home pending laboratory results of tests on blood and phlegm samples being conducted at the Health Ministry's Research and Development Laboratory in Jakarta.
"In general, their condition is already good. But we are still waiting for the lab results which will show us whether they are infected with the virus," Rachmat said.
A spokesman for the hospital's bird flu team, Khalik Saleh, confirmed that as of Tuesday, the patients were improving.
"Considering their condition, we are optimistic they are not infected by the virus. But we are still waiting for the lab results. I hope the results are negative for bird flu," he said.
