Director of Khanh Hoa Provincial Hospital for Tropical Diseases, Nguyen Dong, confirmed the patient’s death on March 23, despite the efforts of doctors from different hospitals to save him.
“This is the first death from the A/H5 flu reported in Vietnam this year, but the specific strain of the virus remains unidentified,” Dong said.
The patient, whose identity has not been revealed, had developed a fever and cough on March 11. He took some medicine but the situation did not improve.
He then visited Ninh Hoa Town Health Centre for a medical check-up and was diagnosed with acute pharyngitis accompanied by monitoring for dengue fever.
On March 16, his condition worsened and he was taken to Ninh Hoa General Hospital. He was diagnosed with intestinal infection and septicemia with warning signs.
One day later, due to his deteriorating health, the patient was transferred to Khanh Hoa General Hospital. The hospital sent his samples to the Pasteur Institute in Nha Trang for testing. On March 20, it was diagnosed that he had contracted the avian influenza A (H5) virus.
As of Saturday, 83 individuals who were in contact with the patient, including family members, healthcare staff and students, are being monitored for any signs of illness.
The room at Nha Trang University’s dormitory where the student lived has been sterilised with Chloramine B.
Khanh Hoa health sector is investigating the source of the infection in order to prevent its spread in the community.
A five-year-old girl in the northern province of Phu Tho last year became Vietnam’s first human H5 influenza flu case since 2014, according to the Ministry of Health.
H5 influenza flu can result in a range of symptoms from mild respiratory problems to severe pneumonia, acute respiratory distress syndrome, shock, and fatality.
Since 2003, the country has recorded nearly 130 human cases of A/H5, all linked to the H5N1 virus, with 64 resulting in death, according to the National Institute of Hygiene and Epidemiology.
People are advised against consuming food made from sick and dead poultry or poultry products of uncertain origins.