A 75-year-old woman from Vietnam's capital Hanoi died last Thursday after exhibiting bird flu symptoms, local newspaper Youth reported Tuesday.

The woman, who had eaten chicken soup, was admitted to the city- based Bach Mai hospital with symptoms of higher fever and breathing difficulty. Her specimens have been sent to the National Institute of Hygiene and Epidemiology for bird flu virus testing.

Vietnam has detected 65 human cases of bird flu infections, including 22 fatalities, in 25 cities and provinces since December 2004, the Vietnamese Health Ministry announced on Nov. 11, noting that the accumulated numbers of bird flu infections and fatalities since December 2003 are 92 and 42, respectively.

Since Oct. 1, bird flu has been spotted in 45 communes in 29 districts in 10 cities and provinces in northern, central and southern localities, namely, Bac Lieu, Dong Thap, Quang Nam, Bac Giang, Thanh Hoa, Hanoi, Hai Duong, Ninh Binh, Hung Yen and Hai Phong, killing and leading to the forced culling of some 38,000 fowls.

Previous outbreaks starting in December 2003 have killed and led to the forced culling of some 46.6 million fowls in Vietnam, causing losses of 3.5 trillion Vietnamese dong (221.5 million US dollars).

Source: Xinhua