On November 14, the Ministry of Health issued a new protocol for the diagnosis, treatment, and prevention of viral pneumonia infections. This new document will replace the protocol established at the end of September last year.
According to the newly released treatment protocol, individuals infected or suspected of being infected with H5N1 must be isolated and treated immediately at the local commune level. Healthcare workers and those directly caring for H5N1 patients are to be provided with preventive antiviral medication, specifically Tamiflu. Additionally, the protocol specifies that individuals who raise, trade, transport, slaughter, consume sick poultry, eat blood pudding, or live in areas with poultry outbreaks, as well as those who come into contact with individuals infected with influenza or who have died from unexplained pneumonia, are considered suspicious cases and require close monitoring.
Regarding patient P., a suspected case of avian influenza currently being treated at the Institute of Tropical Diseases, the Central Institute of Epidemiology has confirmed through testing that Mr. P. is not infected with H5N1. Thus, the total number of reported avian influenza cases in Vietnam since the outbreak began in late 2003 remains at 92, with 42 fatalities.
