Bulgaria's first suspected cases of bird flu in poultry have been confirmed as Newcastle disease, a low-pathogenic form of bird flu, not related to the potentially lethal H5 or H7 viruses, final test results from the EU reference laboratory showed on Tuesday.

Samples of the virus, detected in July on two farms in the village of Slanchogled, Southern Bulgaria showed the chickens had Newcastle disease, Bulgaria's agriculture and forestry minister quoted the National Veterinary Medical Service as reporting on Friday.

The isolated strain was 99.7 compatible with that found in Greece in 2005. The strain, described by the reference lab in Bulgaria as low-Pathogenic, was not dangerous to either humans or poultry.

Bulgaria's first bird-flu outbreak was reported at the end of July. Later Bulgarian and European labs believed the disease was a combination of Newcastle disease and a low-pathogenic avian flu.

In February, four cases of the potentially deadly H5N1 bird flu virus were registered in wild swans in the north of the country.

Source: Xinhua