Wednesday, 15 July 2009

H1N1 Flu Found in US Embassy Staffer

By Heng Reaksmey, VOA Khmer
Original report from Phnom Penh
14 July 2009

Cambodia on Friday added the ninth H1N1 flu case to its growing roster of patients, claiming a US Embassy staff member had been infected with the virus.

The 35-year-old American was tested positive for the illness, sometimes called swine flu, on Thursday, following a trip to Thailand, health officials said.

Six of the nine positive cases in Cambodia have been American, though no one has died here from the disease, which has killed a reported 429 people so far worldwide.

“The patient is in a normal situation, and we will supervise him for at least seven days,” said Sok Touch, head of contagious disease control at the Ministry of Health.

The World Health Organization has recommended that all countries focus on serious cases of the disease, he said.

Cambodia is not on alert, he said, “but we must not be negligent,” adding that the disease can be fatal if a patient comes down with a coinciding illness.

No comments: