A 34-year-old construction worker from Minya province is the third confirmed human H5N1 avian influenza case of the year, according to a Masrawy.com report (computer translated).

Image/CIA
Image/CIA

Laboratory analysis by the central lab in Cairo confirmed the case. According to the report, the patient  is currently on a ventilator at the hospital for treatment and his health condition is stable.

This is the third human H5N1 bird flu case in Egypt in 2014, with the other cases being reported in early March. This is the 176th confirmed case in Egypt since first seen in 2006.

The World Health Organization says avian influenza (“bird flu”) is an infectious disease of birds caused by type A strains of the influenza virus. The infection can cause a wide spectrum of symptoms in birds, ranging from mild illness, which may pass unnoticed, to a rapidly fatal disease that can cause severe epidemics.

Avian influenza viruses do not normally infect humans. However, there have been instances of certain highly pathogenic strains causing severe respiratory disease in humans. In most cases, the people infected had been in close contact with infected poultry or with objects contaminated by their feces.

For more infectious disease news and information, visit and “like” the Infectious Disease News Facebook page