Isle officials tell doctors
to be on alert for avian flu

The state Department of Health has issued an alert to physicians and other health care providers to watch out for symptoms of the potentially deadly avian flu in residents and visitors.

Health Department spokes-woman Laura Lott emphasized that no cases of the flu have yet been reported in Hawaii, but that the department is working on "prevention and vigilance."

The most recent outbreak of the flu in poultry reappeared in China, Indonesia, Thailand and Vietnam in late June. Three human deaths occurred in Vietnam from avian flu infections.

Earlier this year, widespread outbreaks in poultry occurred in Cambodia, China, Indonesia, Japan, Laos, South Korea, Thailand and Vietnam, which resulted in 34 human cases reported in Thailand and Vietnam.

Lott said emergency rooms and clinics are being asked to inquire about a patient's travel history and other probable incidents of exposure.

Although there have been no documented cases of the flu passing from human to human, people can be infected from exposure to animals, she said.