Wild birds in Thai consumed; possible H5N1 in human eaters

Bangkok - Two Thai men have been hospitalized for showing symptoms similar to bird flu after consuming wildfowl in Uttaradit - one of seven provinces in the country's 'red zone' for the animal pandemic, reports said on Sunday.

Uttaradit chief medical officer Boonriang Chuchaisaengrat said further tests were needed to establish whether an unidentified 67-year-old man and his 35-year old son-in-law had contracted avian influenza or not, reported the Thai News Agency.

The two men had reportedly developed flu-like symptoms after eating a wild bird, believed to be a spotted dove, in Uttaradit.

Uttaradit is one of seven central and northern provinces that were recently classified as a 'red zone' for avian influenza, although agriculture and health authorities have thus far denied any confirmed cases of a reappearance of the animal pandemic in the area.

There have been news reports of mysterious mass deaths of the poultry in the provinces.

Bird flu was first confirmed in Thailand in late 2003, after months of what was deemed a government coverup of outbreaks in the country's massive commercial poultry industry, once a major export earner.

Thailand has claimed to be bird flu free for most of this year, and if its status is confirmed without further outbreaks the country may soon resume exports of uncooked chicken meat.

Since bird flu was first detected in the kingdom there have been 19 confirmed cases of the H5eN1 virus among humans, 13 of whom have died.

The last confirmed case of a human infection with avian influenza was a 7-year-old boy from Kanchanaburi Province, who developed symptoms on October 16 and was hospitalized on 19 October. He recovered.

© 2006 dpa - Deutsche Presse-Agentur