UPDATED: 1200 hrs
Egypt woman dies of H5N1-related 'complications'
17 December 2014 16:15 (Last updated 17 December 2014 16:17)
Her death raises the number of bird flu fatalities in Egypt this year to nine
CAIRO
A young woman has succumbed to the H5N1 virus, commonly known as "bird flu," in southern Egypt, the Health Ministry said Wednesday.
Her death raises the number of bird flu fatalities in Egypt this year to nine, Amr Qandil, head of the Health Ministry's preventive medicine department, told The Anadolu Agency.
The deceased woman, a 20-year-old student, was hospitalized three days ago in critical condition after contracting severe pneumonia while sick with bird flu, medical sources in the southern city of Assiut said.
# 9451
After only reporting 4 cases during the first 10 months of the year, since the middle of November Egypt has announced 14 H5N1 human infections. Unfortunately the Egyptian Ministry of Health website continues to lag well behind the media reporting on these cases.
Today multiple Arabic media sources are reporting on their 18th case of the year – that of a 20 year old woman from Assuit province – one that the Egyptian media has been chattering about as a suspected cases for several days.
Two reports:
Egypt: the high number of people with bird flu to 18
Cairo - «middle» | Gate الأربعاء ديسمبر 17 2014, 12:25 PM
The results of the analysis labs, the central Ministry of Health on Wednesday, the old lady of 20 years of Assiut province, south of Cairo bird flu virus infection.
The Ministry of Health, according to the site «the seventh day» that bringing the total number of bird flu during 2014 so far 18 cases (7 cases of healing of 0.3 cases under treatment, 0.8 deaths).
Health: injury lady bird flu virus in Assiut Hospital Ghanayem
The results of the analysis labs, the central Ministry of Health, the old lady of 20 years of management Ghanayem Assiut province Bڤers bird flu, where the symptoms began on 12/10/2014 injury has gone to seek treatment Ghanayem Central Hospital, where he was on 12/14/2014 rays at work Sadr.
Show the presence of pneumonia one was converted to Assiut University Hospital in the evening of the same day and condition of the general unstable which is now on a respirator and bringing the total number of infection with bird flu during 2014 so far 18 cases (7 cases of healing of 0.3 cases under treatment, 0.8 cases death
Meanwhile Egyptian media is filled with new reports of fresh outbreaks in poultry, and additional `suspect’ cases, such as in this report from http://www.ahram.org.eg, that even comes with a macabre bit of artwork (follow link).
A third focus of bird flu in the New Valley and detained 15 people suspected of having Menoufia
(EXCERPT)
Little hotbeds of disease, new Valley emerged this week, in areas of the villages of minors and minors involved, azeb and finally city tile.
The cause to detain 15 people to hospitals in the governorate of monofyia-suspected Bird flu cause panic and fear among citizens and schoolchildren were among the cases of pupils in grade 1 in menouf, while Health Department confirms receipt of the result of negative 9 Central laboratories of the Ministry of health.
As we’ve seen in the past, a great many `suspect’ cases are tested – and most are found to have seasonal flu, or other common respiratory ailments. Over the past 8 years in Egypt, perhaps 1 in 100 has ended up testing positive for H5N1.
There are also calls to increase poultry vaccinations, particularly at the village level, and for residential poultry owners to move their birds away from their living quarters, in order to reduce the risk of infection.
Poultry" demanding an increase of veterinarians to vaccinate against bird flu in Upper Egypt
12/17/2014 11:46 AM
Demanded Poultry Division Cairo Chamber of Commerce need to increase the number of veterinarians in rural health units in which the back of the recent bird flu disease, especially in areas of the village level was stated by Dr. Abdul Aziz, President of the Division.
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He called citizens in rural villages need to build a "nest" special breeding far from the living quarters for the families of birds and disinfected on an ongoing basis so that there is room for the spread of infection of the disease if it is found in birds with the need to expedite the reporting of any strange situations may appear on the birds in the veterinary units in the villages, although there was a severe shortage of veterinarians in these units and this is dangerous, therefore we demand the need to increase the number of veterinarians in veterinary units spread all over the country.
While there aren’t a lot of other options - as discussed previously (see Egypt: Sunday Morning Bird Flu Roundup) - between earlier studies finding diminished effectiveness of many vaccines being used, and the difficulties in deploying a vaccine to the millions of birds held by rural households across Egypt, the ability of a mass vaccination campaign to bring this current outbreak under control is far from guaranteed.
