A 41-year-old woman from Vietnam's northern Hai Phong city has been hospitalized for being suspected to contract bird flu virus strain H5N1.

The woman, named Vu Thi Hoan from Kien Thuy district, was admitted to a hospital in the city on March 25 after suffering cough and breathing difficulty, according to the newspaper Youth on Monday.

She lives in a bird flu-affected area near a five-person family who were admitted to the city-based Viet-Tiep Hospital on March 22with bird flu symptoms. Specimens from the family members are being tested for H5N1.

Vietnamese Health Ministry has just confirmed that 28 local people have been infected with H5N1 since Dec. 26, 2004, of whom 14 died.

To prevent spread of H5N1 among fowls and from poultry to people, the ministry has urged all cities and provinces nationwide to intensify disinfection of their poultry facilities. A nationwide hygiene campaign will be conducted for one month starting on April 1.

Bird flu has stricken a total of 35 cities and provinces of Vietnam since January. Of them, 26 localities have detected no new affected spots for three weeks as of March 26, meeting requirements to declare an end to the disease.

Of the remaining nine localities, seven localities are in the southern region, and two in the northern region.

Source: Xinhua