12-year-old boy suffering from bird flu dies at AIIMS in Delhi

New Delhi, July 20: A 12-year-old boy suffering from bird flu died at AIIMS in the national capital recently, official sources said on Tuesday.

The boy was admitted to the hospital on July 2 with pneumonia and leukaemia. He died on July 12.

While undergoing treatment, tests for COVID-19 and influenza were conducted.

"His samples tested negative for COVID-19. It came out positive for influenza but was non-typable. It was sent to National Institute of Virology, Pune, where they confirmed it to be positive for H5N1 avian influenza," a source said.

Details of the case have been conveyed to the National Centre for Disease Control (NCDC) and their team has started contact tracing and to see if there are any more cases with similar symptoms with whom the child has come in contact, the source said.

According to sources, the boy was not a resident of Delhi.