An 11-year-old girl died of bird flu in eastern Cambodia, leading government health organizations to demand for more disease surveillance.
In reaction to the occurrence, Dr. Anan Jongkaewwattana, a virologist at the National Center for Genetic Engineering and Biotechnology, encouraged the government to improve its surveillance of the H5N1 virus, often known as bird flu, via a Facebook post.
According to the Cambodian Ministry of Health’s Communicable Disease Control Bureau, the girl, who resided in a hamlet in Prey Veng province bordering Vietnam, had feverish symptoms on February 16.
According to the report, the patient experienced a cough and sore throat, and her fever reached 39 degrees Celsius. She was sent from a regional hospital to the National Pediatric Hospital in Phnom Penh after being diagnosed with H5N1. Her condition gradually deteriorated, and she died on February 22.
Dr. Anan believes that increasing monitoring efforts and maintaining a high degree of alertness are critical to preventing the spread of such infections. This might involve increasing surveillance at entrance points such as airports and border crossings, monitoring livestock and poultry farms, and performing frequent health checks on persons who work closely with animals.
Furthermore, the virologist indicated that educating the public about the hazards of bird flu transmission and supporting good hygiene practices should assist to limit the chance of these viruses spreading.
