As monitoring continues: Cebu bird flu free as of yesterday - MCIA

CEBU, Philippines – No passenger that arrived at the Mactan Cebu International Airport registered a body temperature above 37 degrees Celsius as of yesterday, an airport official told The FREEMAN.

MCIAA quarantine chief Dr. Emmanuel Labella said they are closely monitoring inbound passengers, especially those in flights straight from Hong Kong, following the discovery of the H5N1 bird flu case there. 

Health officials from Hong Kong disclosed that a 59-year-old woman had tested positive for H5N1 bird flu virus after returning from mainland China. The woman is reportedly in serious condition.

Labella said they are monitoring inbound passengers in consonance with the advisory from the World Health Organization to adopt a "passive approach" in surveillance.

MCIAA is equipped with thermal video cameras that can quickly scan the body temperature of passengers from afar. Should a passenger register a body temperature above the normal 37 degrees Celsius, he will be examined by the quarantine officer and his medical history will be traced.

Aside from the thermal video scanner at the arrival area for regular passengers, a portable thermal video scanner has also been put up at the VIP area.

Labella explained they have not ceased from monitoring inbound passengers even before the alarm was raised in Hong Kong.

He said passengers who register body temperature above 37 degrees are given medicines. He also advised those who register warmer body temperature to cooperate with airport authorities to avoid further inconvenience.

Labella said they have already coordinated with hospitals in Cebu who have qualified personnel and facilities in case a possible carrier is detected.

Dr. Enrique Sancho, chief of the Communicable Disease Section of DOH 7, said the bird flu or H5N1 virus has not yet penetrated the Philippines. Still, he urged everyone to be vigilant and warned that the H5N1 virus is much more severe than the swine flu or H1N1 virus.

Signs and symptoms that a person has bird flu include influenza, fever, muscle pain, cough, sore throat, sore eyes, and diarrhea and if the case is severe, the affected person will have difficult time breathing.

What is dangerous, he said, is when the H1N1 and H5N1 virus combine. He said there is a 50 percent chance for a person to die if infected by the virus, especially the elderly or those with low immune system.

With the announcement made by Hong Kong authorities, the government raised the bird flu alert to "serious," meaning there is a risk of contracting the disease within the territory.

The bird flu virus first struck Hong Kong in 1997. Six people died in that outbreak and all chickens in the territory were culled. - Jose P. Sollano and Mellanie C. Rosales/JMO (FREEMAN)