China isolates newly-identified virus in child
Pastor Dale Morgan
China isolates newly-identified virus in child*
21 Aug 2006 06:14:50 GMT
Source: Reuters
BEIJING, Aug 21 (Reuters) - Chinese scientists have diagnosed a child
suffering from respiratory illness as being infected with the human
bocavirus, which was only identified last year, an official newspaper
reported on Monday.
The child, from Chenzhou in the central Chinese province of Hunan, had
been admitted to hospital with a severe respiratory infection, the
Guangming Daily said.
DNA tests then confirmed the child had contracted the virus, the
newspaper said. It did not give other details about the case.
Last August, Swedish researchers said they had identified a previously
unknown virus that may cause many cases of serious respiratory
infections in children.
They named the virus human bocavirus and suggested researchers start a
systematic search for all the viruses that cause respiratory infections.
The report, published in the Proceedings of the National Academy of
Sciences, underlined how little doctors know about the sources of most
respiratory infections.
Health experts say being able to quickly diagnose and treat respiratory
illnesses is particularly important especially with growing fears that
influenza, in particular avian influenza, could cause a global pandemic.
China has reported 21 cases of bird flu in humans.
Being able to find out quickly what is making someone sick will allow
antiviral medications to be dispensed early on to prevent serious
illness in the case of influenza.