Bird Flu preventive measures adopted

ISLAMABAD—The Ministry of Health has adopted special preventive measures on the outbreak of influenza in NWFP, official sources said. The viral transport medium required for the transport of suspected human samples along with related guidelines have been dispatched to the provinces and district health departments, sources added. The directions have been issued in the wake of high transmission season and the global threat posed by H5N1 Influenza virus. Meanwhile, the Ministry has advised the provincial and district Governments to adopt recommended measures forpreventing and averting any outbreak of avian influenza. According to sources, the government was also considering registration of poultry farms for having proper monitoring system to check any outbreak of bird flu in the country. As many as 14 suspected patients were admitted last year in hospitals of Lahore and Islamabad however their blood samples were declared negative by the laboratories. Total 136 blood samples were sent to laboratory for test and all were found negative.—Online