An Indonesian teenager has been brought forward as a
case of simultaneous infection with seasonal and avian
strains of influenza. In a paper presented at the
International Conference on Emerging Infectious Diseases,
Vivi Setiawaty of Indonesia's Center for Biomedical
and Pharmaceutical Research and Development
described the case of a 16-year-old girl who was tested
for flu in Jakarta in April 2007. "This is the first case-report of
a human with both influenza A/H5N1 and H3N2 co-infection," the paper states.
"Such infections are of great concern due to the possibility
of genetic reassortment leading to the emergence of a
H5N1 strain that is more easily transmitted human to human,
and emphasizes the importance of advanced laboratory-based
surveillance in geographic regions where both human and
avian influenza viruses are co-circulating." Please follow
this link for the complete CIDRAP article: http://www.cidrap.umn.edu/cidrap/content/influenza
/avianflu/news/mar1708coinfect.html
A time line of major events involving H5N1 has been developed by the WHO. It covers both occurrences in animals as well as humans. It also marks research on H5N1. It is periodically updated. Last update was Dec. 17, 2007
Back to Top
|
