Avian influenza - situation in Egypt

The Ministry of Health and Population of Egypt has announced a new human case of avian influenza A(H5N1) virus infection. The case is a 16-year-old female from Assuit Governorate, Upper Egypt whose symptoms began on 8 December 2008. She was initially hospitalized at the district hospital on 11 December and then transferred to the Assuit University Hospital on 13 December where she died on 15 December. Infection with the H5N1 avian influenza virus was diagnosed by PCR at the Egyptian Central Public Health Laboratory and subsequently confirmed by the US Naval Medical Research Unit No. 3 (NAMRU-3) laboratories on 15 December 2008. Investigations into the source of her infection indicate a recent history of contact with sick and dead poultry.

Of the 51 cases confirmed to date in Egypt, 23 have been fatal.