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Fatma and Muhammet Ozcan In Critical Condition in Van Turkey
Recombinomics Commentary
January 15, 2006
Coskun identified the children as Fatma Ozcan, 15, and her five-year-old brother Muhammet Ozcan, adding that new test results would be announced this afternoon. It was not clear whether the brother and the sister had been in contact with fowl.
The relationship of the above two children to many other Ozcan patients hospitalized in Van from Dogubeyazit is also not clear. Media reports indicate that the above two Ozcan (spelled Ozkan in other media reports) siblings developed symptoms about 6 days ago. Symptoms however, would be 5 days after two other Ozcans (9 year old Ayesegul and 3 year-old Yusuf) were admitted to Van from Dogubeyazit on January 4. The WHO update on the Ozcan siblings did mention that they were siblings to each other, but failed to mention disease onset dates or the relationship with 8 other family members hospitalized in Van.
In addition to the 10 Ozmans admitted to Van between January 4-6, two additional Ozmans, 2 year-old Volikan and 3 year old Yavuz ) also admitted within the past few days.
The large number of Ozman patients admitted to Van from Dogubeyitz is cause for concern because two have already been H5N1 confirmed and two more are likely to soon be confirmed, yet 10 additional patients have not been declared H5N1 positive although some or most have symptoms.
Similarly, the failure of WHO to provide information on H5N1 positive patients in Turkey is cause for concern.
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