Vietnam reports human H5N1 bird flu death in four-year-old
The last time Vietnam reported a fatality from H5N1 avian influenza was January 2012, when a 26-year-old pregnant female from Soc Trang province died from the lethal viral disease.
However, 14 months later, Vietnamese health officials now report that a four-year-old child has died from this strain of bird flu.
The AFP reports today, the boy, who was from a farming family, became unwell at the start of last week.
After watching his grandmother kill a chicken, he developed a high fever and was admitted to hospital where he died. Few other details are available.
The H5N1 strain of avian influenza is not the same strain (H7N9) that has affected 24 people in China, and killed 7.
According to the World Health Organization (WHO), Vietnam has recorded one of the highest numbers of fatalities from bird flu in Southeast Asia, with 62 human deaths since 2003, including two last year.
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