12 March 2012 - The Ministry of Health of Indonesia has notified WHO of a new case of human infection with avian influenza A(H5N1) virus.

The case is a 24 year-old female from Bengkulu Province. She developed fever on 23 February 2012 and was hospitalized on the following day. She had breathing difficulty, her condition deteriorated and she died on 1 March 2012.

Epidemiological investigation conducted by a team of public health and animal health authorities indicated an exposure to a potentially contaminated environment where sudden deaths of poultry had recently occurred.

The case was confirmed by the National Institute of Health Research and Development, Ministry of Health.

To date, of the 187 cases reported in Indonesia since 2005, 155 have been fatal.