Archipelago

Bird flu outbreak revives in South Sulawesi, 4 hospitalized

Andi Hajramurni, The Jakarta Post, Makassar, South Sulawesi | Wed, 09/29/2010 5:15 PM
A | A | A |

Dr. Wahidin Sudirohusodo Hospital in the South Sulawesi capital of Makassar is treating four people from Pinrang and Soppeng regencies for displaying symptoms of avian flu virus infection.

The patients, three of them are children, were admitted to the hospital on Tuesday night after complaining about high fever, suffocation and coughs. They were immediately taken to the infection center in accordance with the standard operating procedure for avian flu treatment, the hospital’s director, Kalsum Patonangi, said Wednesday.

“We are waiting for the laboratory examination to confirm the status of the patients,” Kalsum said.

Head of the Pinrang health agency for disease control, Dyah Puspita Dewi, said the agency had monitored 30 people who suffered from fever. She added three of them were admitted to the hospital as their health condition worsened.

“We suspect the three people were infected with the bird flu virus as their fever reaches 38 degree Celsius and complain of suffocation, sore throats and coughs, which are symptoms of the disease,” she said.

She added the three patients caught a fever after dozens of chickens nearby their homes suddenly died.

The regional agriculture and husbandry agency data recorded that 6,300 chickens in seven districts across Pinrang regency had died in the past week of avian flu virus.

Follow our twitter @jakpost
& our public blog @blogIMO
Mail to a friend | Printer Friendly Version | Digg it! | Add to Del.icio.us! | submit to reddit | Stumble it! | Share on facebook | Share on tweeter |
Comments ()