What evidence will Dr. Dowell likely examine first to
see if the girl died from bird flu?
The disease that concerned Dr. Dowell was avian
influenza, or bird flu. This virus usually strikes poultry,
like chickens, ducks, and turkeys. It's rare for bird flu to
make people sick.
In fact, by 2003, only about 40 people had died from bird
flu in the whole world. And all of them had gotten it from
handling sick birds or breathing in their secretions, like
saliva.
In some places in Thailand, chickens run freely through
homes. Some are even kept as pets. In those conditions,
there's always a danger of a bird flu outbreak.
-- When Birds Get Flu and Cows Go Mad!,
John DiConsiglio
how often the girl washed her hands
o whether the girl lived with her mother
whether the girl lived near birds
O how far the girl's house was from a water source