Bird flu kills 4 in Cambodia

Avian influenza H5N1 virus killed two more children on Monday, bringing the death toll to four and the number of cases to five in 2013, health officials confirmed Tuesday. Dr. Denis Laurent, deputy director of Kantha Bopha Children's Hospital, which is the kingdom's largest pediatric hospital, told Xinhua on Tuesday that the latest two deaths were a one-year-old girl from Kompong Speu province's Kong Pisei district and an eight- year-old girl from Kampot province's Toek Chhou district. He said the two girls died on Monday while receiving medical treatment at the Kantha Bopha Children's Hospital in Phnom Penh. Last week, Cambodian Health Ministry and the World Health Organization reported 3 new human cases of avian influenza H5N1 with two fatalities. The two persons died last week from the virus were a 15-year- old female from Prey Kabass district of Takeo province and a 35- year-old man from Kong Pisei district of Kampong Speu province, a joint statement said. Among the five cases, an eight-month-old infant boy in Phnom Penh's Por Senchey district, who developed symptoms on Jan. 8, is the only victim to survive. Cambodia first reported H5N1 in poultry in Jan. 2004. To date, the country has recorded 26 human cases of the virus, killing 23 people. Minister of Health Mam Bunheng said avian influenza H5N1 is still a threat to the health of Cambodians and children still seem to be most vulnerable. "I urge parents and guardians to keep their children away from sick or dead poultry," he said in the statement. "If their kids have fast or difficult breathing, they should be brought to medical attention at the nearest health facilities."