SINGAPORE: The Health Ministry says it has been
informed of a case of avian influenza A (H5N1) in an eight-year-old
girl from Indonesia who had travelled to
Singapore.
In a statement, the ministry said the girl developed
fever in Singapore on June 18 and returned to Indonesia on June 24.
She died on July 3 this year.
The ministry said human cases of avian influenza A
have been reported in a number of countries, including Indonesia,
from time to time since 2004.
To date, the efficient spread of H5N1 from person to person has not
been reported. And the Health Ministry has not been notified of any
local cases of H5N1.
Singapore's Health Ministry is in close contact with the Indonesian
health authorities and the World Health Organisation.
The Indonesian health authorities have reported that the girl had
exposure to poultry while in Indonesia, a few days before her
travel to Singapore. They are monitoring her close contacts,
including family members. All contacts have remained well.
As a precautionary measure, Singapore's Health Ministry has alerted
hospitals to the case and commenced contact tracing in
Singapore.
The girl stayed at a hotel in Singapore with her mother and other
relatives from 19 to 24 June 2012 on a vacation. She was brought to
see a general practitioner for high fever on 22 June and was given
treatment. Her relative who lives here and the general practitioner
who treated the case are both well.
- CNA/de
