Health authorities confirmed today that a Lao woman who died earlier this month with symptoms of bird flu had contracted the virulent H5N1 subtype of the virus. Tests carried out by a World Health Organization Reference Laboratory in Tokyo confirmed that the woman, who died on March 4, had the H5N1 virus, said an announcement from the WHO and the Lao Health Ministry. «Hospital staff that treated the patient and close family contacts are being monitored daily. None have shown signs of infection,» it said. According to the Associated Press, Tests conducted in Laos had already confirmed that she had a type of bird flu, but the exact subtype was not then known. Earlier this month, Laos announced the country's first confirmed human bird flu fatality, a 15-year-old girl who had fallen ill Feb. 10 and died March 7. Both victims lived in Vientiane province _ but outside the capital city of the same name _ and both became ill after nearby outbreaks of bird flu in poultry. The joint statement said the government, and relevant international agencies such as the Food and Agriculture Organization of the United Nations and the United Nations Children's Fund, continue «to actively strengthen key areas including case reporting from the hospital system, control of poultry outbreaks, diagnosis capacity and community awareness campaigns.» «We ask the Lao people to join together to halt the spread of the disease,» it quoted Lao Health Minister Dr. Ponmek Dalaloy saying. «Doing so will help protect our children, our neighbors and our country's economy.» Fresh outbreaks of H5N1 in poultry were detected at two farms near Vientiane in early February _ the country's first reported outbreaks since July 2006. Since February several other outbreaks have been reported, including in Savannakhet in southern Laos. Bird flu has killed at least 168 people since the virus began ravaging Asian poultry stocks in late 2003. It remains hard for humans to catch, but experts fear the virus could mutate into a form that passes easily among people, potentially sparking a pandemic. So far, most human cases have been linked to contact with infected birds. -- SPA
