Egypt has found its 12th case of human bird flu,
Health and Population Minister Hatem el-Gabali said in comments
published late on Monday.
The latest case was an 18-year-old woman from a province north of
Cairo who caught the virus after handling infected birds, the state
MENA news agency quoted Gabali and ministry officials saying.
The ministry said the woman was in a stable condition and members
of her family were being tested for infection.
"She is being given Tamiflu, the necessary treatment for battling
bird flu," a ministry official said, referring to the anti-viral
medication thought to be the best method of fighting bird flu in
humans.
The deadly H5N1 strain has so far killed three people in Egypt,
according to the government. A further five have made full recoveries
and four remain in hospital.
The World Health Organization (WHO), which carries out additional
tests after initial government testing, has confirmed four of Egypt's
total cases including two of the deaths.
The disease, which has killed at least 109 people worldwide, has
spread rapidly since 2003 from Asia to Europe, the Middle East and
Africa. While mainly affecting animals, scientists fear the disease
could mutate into a form that can pass between humans, sparking
a pandemic.
Bird flu was detected in birds in Egypt in February and the first
human infection was reported in mid-March. The WHO has said it is
concerned about the disease's human toll in a relatively short period
of time.
Women, who make up all three of Egypt's fatalities, are often responsible
for slaughtering and cooking domestic poultry, and the government
has called for more awareness about bird flu among women to protect
themselves and their families.
