Cambodia detects two human cases of bird flu so far this year

Bangkok.– Cambodia has detected two cases of human infection with bird flu so far this year, and the disease killed four people in 2023, health authorities revealed.

The Cambodian Ministry of Health issued a statement on Facebook saying that on Saturday, a 69-year-old man from Siem Reap Province in northwest Cambodia tested positive for the H5N1 virus.

“The patient is receiving intensive care from a team of doctors (…) According to the investigation, the man raised 50 to 60 chickens and died about two weeks ago,” the Ministry of Health said in the letter.

Another case reported last Thursday was a 3-year-old boy from the southeastern Prey Veng province who was also taken to hospital.

The ministry added that as a result of these latest cases, authorities have launched a national protocol aimed at finding the spread of the pathogen in animals and humans to prevent community outbreaks.

According to official data, at least 64 people in Cambodia have been infected with bird flu since 2003, and 41 of them died.

Avian influenza is a disease that is usually transmitted from birds to humans through direct contact, although rare cases of infection between humans occur, and those infected usually require hospitalization. Effie