A 4-year-old Egyptian boy has contracted the bird flu virus, bringing the number of human avian flu cases in the country to 70, a deputy health minister said on Thursday.
Amr Kandil said the boy from the Sharqiya in the country`s northeast had been hospitalized with a high fever. The tests confirmed the H5N1 virus.
The boy was being treated with the anti-viral drug Tamiflu and his condition was stable, the health official said.
Egypt`s first case of bird flu was recorded in 2006, since when at least 26 people have died after contracting the virus.
Although there have been no incidences of human-to-human infection, experts fear that the bird flu virus may mutate into a form that could be easily transmitted from person to person, causing a global pandemic.
sections: World News |