Iraqi Woman Dies of Suspected Bird Flu - February 2006

[Theresa42]

Possible new case of human bird flu in Iraq: WHO

Possible new case of human bird flu in Iraq: WHO

babelfished from French:

A hearth of aviary influenza suspect? in the south of Soulaimiyah
SOULAIMANIYAH, 22 f?v 2006 (AFP) - 14h47

An aviary hearth of influenza is suspect? to 180 km in the south of Soulaimaniyah, in Iraqi Kurdistan, after the death of 250 domestic birds died in the village of Jao Khaled, indicated to Wednesday the chief of the fight against the aviary influenza, in the area, Tahsine Namek.

"Of the samples were sent for analysis in Soulaimiyah and Baghdad, and we suspect the presence of the stock mortal of the aviary influenza, virus H5N1", indicated this Kurdish person in charge.

A medical cord was imposed on the village to prevent the expansion of epizooty, it added.

Iraq announced in January two human cases of aviary influenza of type H5N1. These cases which resulted in the death of a 14 year old teenager and his/her uncle, were localised in the mountain of Rania, in the north of Soulaimaniyah.

http://www.institutkurde.org/afp/?src=http://afp.institutkurde.org/AFP/francais/topics/actu/060222144722.8wxton2x.xml

I believe the story above is also referring to Diyala province -- "180 km in the south of Soulaimaniyah" would be about right >>

Possible new case of human bird flu in Iraq: WHO
Published: 2/24/2006

GENEVA - Health officials in Iraq are investigating a possible new human case of bird flu in the country's northeast, a UN expert said Friday.

Dr Naeema al-Gasseer, the World Health Organisation's representative in Iraq, told journalists that the suspected case of the highly pathogenic H5N1 virus was reported in Kifri, in Diyala province near the border with Iran.

Al-Gasseer, who was speaking during a telephone briefing, did not give further details about the patient or his or her state of health.

A handful of suspect cases have been probed in Iraq since the virus struck at the start of the year.

Officials say H5N1 has killed two people there: a teenage girl and her uncle, who both lived near Sulaimaniyah, in the country's northern Kurdistan region.

Al-Gasseer said that both had caught the virus from sick birds, not each other.

There has so far been no human-to-human transmission of H5N1, which has claimed some 92 lives, mostly in Vietnam, Indonesia and Thailand, since resurfacing among birds in 2003.

Experts are concerned that if human-to-human transmission occurs, it could signal that the virus has mutated and that a human flu pandemic is on it way, like those which claimed millions of lives in the past.

Al-Gasseer also said that two new outbreaks of the broad H5 category of avian influenza have been detected among poultry in Iraq: one in Diyala province and the other in Sulaimaniyah province.

Local authorities have begun slaughtering all poultry in the latter region and virus samples are on their way to a laboratory, she said.

http://www.turkishpress.com/news.asp?id=109539

 

[Theresa42]

13 samples from Maysan / 13 from Sulaimaniyah / 16 from areas unknown

13 samples from Maysan / 13 from Sulaimaniyah / 16 from areas unknown

Kurdish Farmers Sceptical About Compensation Promises
Thursday, 23 February 2006

Sulaimaniyah (Reuters, IRIN) - Farmers in northern Iraq are resisting the culling of poultry by health officials following an outbreak of the H5N1 virus, or avian flu, saying they want compensation before killing their birds.

"Farmers are afraid we aren't going to compensate them for their losses, but we're just waiting for the money to come through," said Zanna Muhammad, head of the bird flu prevention drive in the local branch of the health ministry in Sulaimaniyah city.

"We urge them to recognise that their health is much more important than keeping potentially deadly birds."

Earlier this week, the government provided details on its planned compensation programme. Tahssin Nameek, deputy minister of agriculture of the Kurdistan government, said nearly US $6 million would be allocated to farmers, but that the value of birds killed must be assessed before financial packages can be granted.

According to the Ministry of Agriculture in Sulaimaniyah, more than one and a half million birds have been culled so far in the northern Kurdish areas, an area stretching from the Turkish border to about 150 km south of Raniyah. That was the village where the first human bird flu death of a teenager was confirmed on 17 January. A second death, the first victim's uncle, was confirmed on 27 January.

More suspected cases have been discovered since, with 13 blood samples taken from the southern governorate of Missan and another 13 in Sulaimaniyah, of which 10 are currently being tested at a World Health Organization (WHO) laboratory.

The results are expected back on 25 February. A further 16 samples are also reportedly expected to be tested next week, but details on their origins remain unclear.

Nevertheless, many farmers are reluctant to destroy their precious inventories, with some even questioning the gravity of the medical situation. "I don't believe a duck can cause this disease," said Sulaimaniyah farm resident Darhanish Yehia. "I will continue to let my son play with the ducks, and won't let any person take them from us."

Those who have already culled many of their birds express little faith in government promises of reimbursement. "They culled 20 ducks and 40 chickens of mine, on which I had been dependant to feed my family," Juanne Kader, a widow and mother of five said. "I went to the government three times asking for compensation, but they just say it will take time."

Meanwhile, a public awareness programme is alerting families and school teachers to the dangers of contact with infected birds. "We have so many ducks in our lakes and farms, especially in areas near Sulaimaniyah, and children usually play with them. This can be very dangerous for all family members," explained Dr Ahmed Kabut, clinician for the prevention campaign in northern Iraq.

"Ducks are much more dangerous in this area than chickens because they migrate and can easily carry the disease to other areas."

Government officials estimate that an effective prevention programme countrywide could cost as much as US $50 million.

http://www.thekurdistani.com/news/index.php?option=com_content&task=view&id=1821&Itemid=2

 

[Toaster2]

Iraq checking four possible human cases of bird flu

Iraq checking four possible human cases of bird flu

http://www.alertnet.org/thenews/newsdesk/IBO854718.htm

Iraq checking four possible human cases of bird flu
28 Feb 2006 15:31:29 GMT

Source: Reuters


MORE
BAGHDAD, Feb 28 (Reuters) - Iraq said on Tuesday it was making checks for three suspected human cases of bird flu in Baghdad and one in the northeastern province of Dayala.

"There are three suspected cases in Baghdad and one in the town of Kefry, in Dayala," said Ibtisam Aziz, head of a health minister task force charged with monitoring the disease.

"All these cases are under observation now by the health ministry."

Two fatal cases of human bird flu -- in a teenage girl and her uncle last month -- have been confirmed in the northern province of Sulaimaniya, close to the border with Turkey.

 

[Toaster2]

Re: Iraq checking four possible human cases of bird flu

Re: Iraq checking four possible human cases of bird flu

I remember that there were more cases tested a bit over a week ago - has anyone heard on the results of these patients ?

 

[DB]

Iraqi Woman Dies of Suspected Bird Flu

Iraqi Woman Dies of Suspected Bird Flu

http://en.chinabroadcast.cn/706/2006/03/02/198@57385.htm
Iraqi Woman Dies of Suspected Bird Flu

The Iraqi government announced on Thursday that a woman, suspected of being infected with the deadly H5N1 bird flu virus, had died in the southern province of Nassiriya.

Ibtisam Aziz, spokeswoman of the government's Committee on Avian Influenza, said in a statement that tests on samples from the woman were currently underway in laboratories in both Baghdad and Cairo.

In addition, samples from two villages in the Dayala province in northeastern Iraq are also being tested, said the spokeswoman, adding that the government had dispatched expert teams there to help cull the birds and disinfect the villages.

Iraq has so far reported two fatal human cases of bird flu. A teenage girl and his uncle from the northern Iraqi province of Sulaimaniya near the border with Turkey were confirmed dead of the deadly disease last month.

The H5N1 strain of bird flu has claimed the lives of over 90 people worldwide since late 2003.

Currently, the disease only jumps from birds to humans. But experts fear that the virus might mutate into a form that can easily pass among humans, sparking a global pandemic.