Third Human Bird Flu Case Retrospectively Confirmed In Iraq

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Main Category: Bird Flu / Avian Flu
Article Date: 24 Sep 2006 - 0:00 PDT

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The Iraq Ministry of Health has confirmed the country's third human infection with the H5N1 bird flu virus strain, says the World Health Organization (WHO). A 3-year-old boy was taken to hospital in Baghdad on March 15th. Fortunately, he made a full recovery.

During its outbreak, which is now considered over, Iraq faced problems in the shipment of specimens for external verification of diagnostic tests. For the retrospectively confirmed case, initial test results were inconclusive, possibly as a result of sample deterioration during shipment. Repeated testing, using different methods, was needed for diagnostic confirmation.

The two cases previously confirmed in Iraq occurred in January 2006. Both cases were fatal.

Written by: Christian Nordqvist
Editor: Medical News Today
Copyright: Medical News Today
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