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Via Xinhua News this morning (h/t @makoto_au_japon) we get word of Cambodia’s 14th H5N1 case of the year, that of a 3-year-old boy from Prey Veng province who is hospitalized in stable condition.
Although nowhere near the top of the list for human H5N1 infections (a dubious honor still held by Indonesia), 2013 has seen a steep rise in human infections with the H5N1 virus in Cambodia.
2005 – 4 cases 2009 – 1 case
2006 – 2 cases 2010 – 1 case
2007 – 1 case 2011 – 8 cases
2008 – 1 case 2012 - 3 cases
2009 – 1 case 2013 - 14 cases
Despite this sudden spike in cases, all appear to be widely scattered, and have been attributed to direct contact to infected poultry. There are no indications of human-to-human spread of the virus.
Cambodia reports 14th human case of bird flu this year
English.news.cn 2013-07-12 18:50:05
PHNOM PENH, July 12 (Xinhua) -- A three-year-old boy from Cambodia's eastern Prey Veng province has been confirmed positive for the avian influenza H5N1, bringing the number of the cases to 14 so far this year, a joint statement by the World Health Organization and Cambodian Health Ministry said Friday.
Only five cases out of the 14 cases this year survived.
The 14th victim was confirmed positive for H5N1 on Wednesday, the statement said, adding that the boy was admitted to the Kantha Bopha Hospital with fever, dyspnea and cough Monday. "At the hospital, he was treated with Tamiflu and is currently in stable condition,"it said. "There were recent deaths among poultry in the village and the boy was likely to be exposed to sick and dead poultry before he became sick,"it added.
Avian influenza H5N1 remained a serious threat to the health of all Cambodians, Health Minister Mam Bunheng said. "Children also seem to be most vulnerable and are at high risk because they like to play where poultry are found,"he said in the statement."I urge parents and guardians to keep children away from sick or dead poultry and make sure children wash their hands with soap and water after any contact with poultry."
H5N1 influenza is a flu that normally spreads between sick poultry, but it can sometimes spread from poultry to humans, the statement said, adding that it is a very serious disease that requires hospitalization.
Cambodia sees the worst outbreak of the virus this year since the disease was first identified in 2004. To date, the country has recorded 35 human cases of the virus, killing 28 people.
Since 2003, there have been 633 laboratory confirmed human cases of H5N1 virus globally with 376 related deaths, the statement said.
For now, bird flu remains primarily a threat to poultry. The virus remains poorly adapted to human physiology, and despite ample opportunities to cause illness in humans, the virus only causes rare, sporadic infections.
The concern, of course, is that over time the virus will better adapt and pose a pandemic threat to humans.
The current WHO phase of pandemic alert for avian influenza A(H5N1) is: ALERT
