Woman hospitalized in Indonesia with bird flu

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Woman hospitalized in Indonesia with bird flu Tue Feb 7, 7:29 AM ET

A woman has been hospitalized with suspected bird flu in Indonesia,

where 16 people have died from the disease since July 2005.

The 27-year-old patient was moved to the state-run Sulianto Saroso

hospital for infectious diseases in Jakarta after being treated at a

private hospital in West Java since last Thursday, said hospital

spokesman Ilham Patu on Tuesday.

Blood tests taken at the private hospital showed " signs that she is a

suspected case " of bird flu, Patu said.

Indonesia is currently awaiting test results from the World Health

Organisation (WHO) on 11 more suspected infections after local tests

showed positive results.

The latest WHO test results obtained at the weekend showed that a 22-

year-old chicken vendor who died last month and a 15-year-old

teenager who died last Wednesday had contracted the H5N1 virus.

Indonesia has recorded 23 human cases of bird flu, resulting in 16

deaths, according to the health ministry.

The virus has killed over 85 people in Asia since 2003.

Experts fear that H5N1 could mutate into a form easily transmissible

by humans, sparking a global pandemic with the potential to kill

millions.