(AFP File Photo)
An Egyptian woman died a week after contracting bird flu in the city of Minya, in Upper Egypt on Wednesday. She is the third person to have died this year due to the disease.
The woman, who was 30 years old, was infected as a result of breeding birds at her home in the neighbourhood of Bani Mazaar, said the Ministry of Health.
The woman was reportedly suffering from a sore throat, shortage of breath, coughing, and pain in the limbs on 11 November. She was transferred to the Bani Mazaar fever hospital, the statement added.
Five days later, her condition deteriorated and she developed dual pneumonia. She was then transferred to the health insurance hospital of Bani Mazaar where was put on a ventilator but died.
Another two people have contracted the virus and are now in critical condition; a child from Minya and a young woman from Assuit. Both cases are related to bird breeding.
Approximately, 180 people have contracted bird flu in Egypt since 2006 and of these 66 died, according to the ministry.
The ministry said it has informed the veterinary medicine authority to take necessary precautions to combat the epidemic in potentially infected areas.
