An immigration counter at the Tan Son Nhat Airport.

The Ministry of Health Sunday confirmed the first case of influenza A (H1N1) in Vietnam after a 23-year-old Vietnamese student returning from the US tested positive for the flu.

“The patient was in the early stage of the disease and did not have high temperatures and symptoms of the disease when arriving at the airport,” said Deputy Health Minister Trinh Quang Huan.

He said his ministry had instructed strict supervision of all passengers arriving on the same flight with the student, known only as Le Quang T., and people who had contact with him.

T., who is being quarantined at the Hospital for Tropical Diseases in Ho Chi Minh City, has recovered well with normal appetite and has a normal temperature, the municipal Department of Health told the media at a briefing Sunday.

The Vietnamese student studying in the US state of Wisconsin arrived at the Tan Son Nhat International Airport last Tuesday at 10 p.m. on United Airlines’ flight UA869 from Chicago that transited in Hong Kong.

Arriving in Ho Chi Minh City with him were 189 passengers from HCMC and 23 other cities and provinces.

“The patient arrived with no high temperature and later came to Thong Nhat Hospital in Tan Binh District to be examined after experiencing fatigue,” said Nguyen Van Chau, director of HCMC Health Department.

A test carried out on Saturday found T. infected with the influenza A (H1N1) virus. The samples were then sent to the National Institute of Hygiene and Epidemiology and the HCMC Pasteur Institute for cross testing, and both tests provided similar results.

A source told Thanh Nien that T. was initially diagnosed with a sore throat by Thong Nhat Hospital, and a viral fever by the Hospital for Tropical Diseases.

On Wednesday, the Hoan My Hospital in Tan Binh District recommended that he get tested for the influenza A (H1N1) virus at the Hospital for Tropical Diseases after learning he came from the infected zone. He did not follow the advice initially but was persuaded to do so later by the Health Department which had been informed of the case by the Hoan My Hospital.

Doctor Phan Van Nghiem of the HCMC Health Department said tests on five relatives in T’s house proved negative for the virus, adding that these people were still quarantined and being treated with preventive medicines.

Tests are under way on other relatives, the housekeeper and a taxi driver who had taken him from the airport to his house, Nghiem said.

The department has informed authorities in Hong Kong where the patient’s flight had transited, VietNamNet news website reported.

High alert

Health Minister Nguyen Quoc Trieu Sunday held an urgent meeting with representatives of the World Health Organization in Vietnam and concerned agencies to discuss measures to prevent the flu from assuming epidemic proportions.

WHO representatives said the preventive health system in Vietnam has been actively monitoring the flu and timely detection in the first case would help prevent further spread of the disease among the larger community.

The agency said it would closely monitor the case and would raise the alarm level to phase six – pandemic or community level outbreak - when it is necessary.

Deputy Health Minister Huan said the ministry had instructed 24 cities and provinces to closely monitor the health of 189 people who had arrived on the same flight as the patient.

“These passengers should voluntarily check their health at local facilities to protect themselves and the community,” he advised.

Officials from the Bureau for Preventive Health came to HCMC to check on some families of the passengers.

Meanwhile, medical workers at the hospitals where the patients had been examined are also required to follow quarantine regulations, the Vietnam News Agency reported.

The city’s Agency for Preventive Health has sterilized the house of the patient in Tan Binh District with lime powder or Chloramine B, like other places the patient had visited before he was placed in quarantine.

The city’s health department has instructed health facilities in all 24 districts to stand ready to fight against the possible spread of the virus, previously known as swine flu.

“The Hospital for Tropical Diseases will be authorized to treat patients if there is an outbreak,” said department Director Chau.

However, Chau said people should not be over anxious because authorities were doing their best to prevent any spread of the disease.

Health authorities have called on the public to contact hotlines about any suspected case, at 0989.671115 for the Health Ministry and 08.39309981 for the HCMC Health Department.

Reported by Thanh Tung – Nam Son