Phnom Penh, Aug 6 : A six-year-old girl from southern Cambodia's Takeo province has been confirmed for H5N1 human avian influenza, bringing the number of cases to 15 so far this year, the Ministry of Health said in a statement on Wednesday.

"A laboratory result from the National Institute of Public Health showed on August 5 that the girl was positive for H5N1 virus," the statement said.

"The patient has the symptoms of fever, cough, fatigue, and breathing difficulty, and she is currently being rescued by a team of doctors," it added.

The victim lives in Prey Mok village of Tram Kak district.

"Investigations revealed that in the past 20 days, about 30 chickens had fallen ill and died subsequently at the girl's house, and her mother cooked dead chickens for food, days before the girl got sick," the statement said.

Health authorities are looking into the source of the infection and are examining any suspected cases or people who have been in contact with the victim in order to prevent an outbreak in the community, Xinhua news agency reported.

Tamiflu (oseltamivir), an antiviral drug to prevent the bird flu from spreading, was also distributed to people who had direct contact with the ill-fated girl, the statement said.

So far this year, the Southeast Asian country recorded a total of 15 human cases of H5N1 bird flu, with five deaths, according to the Ministry of Health.

H5N1 influenza virus infection can cause a range of diseases in humans, from mild to severe and in some cases, it can even be fatal. Symptoms reported have primarily been respiratory, but conjunctivitis and other non-respiratory symptoms have also been reported. There have also been a few detections of H5N1 virus in persons who were exposed to infected animals or their environments but who did not show any symptoms.

Infections in humans can cause severe disease with a high mortality rate. The human cases detected thus far are mostly linked to close contact with infected birds and other animals and contaminated environments. This virus does not appear to transmit easily from person to person, and sustained human-to-human transmission has not been reported.

/IANS