A 17-year-old teenager who is suspected of having contracted the H1N1 bird flu virus is in a critical condition at the Arifin Achmad regional public hospital in Pekanbaru, Riau.
The hospital head for bird flu control, Azisman Saad, said Sunday the teenager was receiving intensive treatment in an isolation room at the hospital.
“The suspect is still in a comma-like condition and is suffering from a high fever,” Azisman said.
He added the patient needed a machine to assist his breathing.
“A team of doctors from the Riau provincial health agency took a blood sample of the patient and will send it to the health ministry in Jakarta,” he said.
Evy, one of the patient’s relatives said the patient had been ill since Friday.
She said he had been suffering from a fever, breathing difficulties and diarrhea before fainting.
“We have yet to know how the patient could have been infected by the virus,” she said. (ewd)
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