The Ministry of Health in Viet Nam has informed the World Health Organization (WHO) that three recent deaths from influenza-like illness in Viet Nam were caused by infection with avian influenza. These are the first officially reported cases of avian influenza in Viet Nam since late February.
The three cases are among a group of patients, admitted to hospitals in Viet Nam between 19 July and 8 August that have been under investigation by health authorities.
Initial tests have identified the virus as belonging to the H5 subtype. Further testing is needed to determine whether the virus belongs to the same H5N1 strain that caused 22 cases, with 15 deaths in Viet Nam, and 12 cases, with 8 deaths, in Thailand earlier this year.
To date, H5N1 is the only strain of the H5 subtype known to jump directly from infected poultry to cause illness in humans.
Two of the fatal cases occurred in the northern Ha Tay province. The third case occurred in the southern province of Hau Giang. Staff from the WHO country office in Viet Nam will be meeting with the Ministry of Health this afternoon to gather further details about these cases and work out plans for addressing the situation. The government has today announced an initial series of measures aimed at controlling the disease in poultry and preventing further cases in humans.
WHO regards it as particularly important that viruses from these cases be made available for further analysis by laboratories in the WHO Global Influenza Surveillance Network. Further studies can help determine whether the virus has mutated and thus yield valuable information about the further evolution of the outbreak, the risks to humans, and the best preventive measures. Studies of the virus are also important in the further development, presently under way, of an effective human vaccine.