Turkish Health Ministry Coordination Center for Bird Flu said Sunday that a boy, brother of the girl who died today suspected of having caught bird flu virus, tested positive.

The center, which was set up on Sunday, said in a statement that Fatma Ozcan, 12, died at Van Yuzuncu Yil Hospital in eastern Turkey when she was on a respirator.

It said Fatma's brother tested positive for bird flu and was in a serious condition in the hospital.

"Lab results showed that the boy tested positive for bird flu virus. Fatma, who died, was negative, according to initial tests," the center said.

Though preliminary tests showed Fatma Ozcan was negative for H5N1 strain, laboratory tests have to confirm whether the girl had actually been infected.

Fatma's five-year-old brother Muhammet Ozcan tested positive for the deadly virus, increasing the number of the infected in Turkey to 19.

The two children were from the same region of Dogubeyazit, where three siblings died of bird flu less than two weeks ago.

Doctors said the two children had been in contact with infected chickens and were brought to the hospital six days after they began showing the first symptoms.

According to the World Health Organization, anti-bird flu drugs work best if given in the first 48 hours after the onset of symptoms.

Source: Xinhua