2nd South Korea farm hit with H5N1

Bird flu hits second S Korea farm

The new bird flu cases are the first for South Korea in three years

A second chicken farm in South Korea has been found to contain the H5N1 form of bird flu, officials say.

The outbreak occurred at a farm close to where a case was confirmed at the weekend, the first to hit the country in three years.

Quarantine officials are carrying out the slaughter of 236,000 poultry around the first infected farm in Iksan, about 250km (155 miles) south of Seoul.

Dogs, cats and pigs are also being culled in a bid to stem the outbreak.

"The test results have shown that we had a second case of highly-pathogenic H5N1 bird flu," South Korea's agriculture ministry said.

Vaccinations

The new case was found at a farm in Hwangdeung district, just 3km (1.9 miles) from where the first outbreak was found, the ministry added.

As with the first farm, livestock within a 500-metre (1,650-foot) radius of the latest outbreak are to be culled to prevent the virus from spreading.

Quick guide: Bird flu

The ministry said the cull may be extended to a radius of 3km from both farms.

The culling of 236,000 poultry and the disposal of some six million eggs began on Sunday.

The movement of livestock around the infected area is being controlled. Local residents have been vaccinated, although there are no reports of anyone infected by the virus.

Some 600 dogs, as well as cats and pigs, are reportedly due to be slaughtered in Iksan.

A city official said dogs bred on farms for consumption would be killed, but another anonymous official told the Associated Press the cull would cover "dogs raised individually in houses".

Pandemic fears

South Korea killed 5.3 million birds during the last known outbreak of bird flu in 2003.

The H5N1 virus began hitting Asian poultry stocks in 2003, and has killed at least 153 people worldwide.

Most human cases have resulted from contact with infected birds.

Scientists fear the virus could mutate into a form that is more easily transmitted between people, possibly creating a pandemic.

#57 and counting in Indonesia

A 35-year-old Indonesian woman died from bird flu Tuesday, bringing the country's world-leading total to 57, a health official said. The victim, from West Java, had been in Jakarta's Sulianti Saroso Hospital, which has been designated to treat patients with suspected bird flu, for nearly three weeks before succumbing to the H5N1 virus, said Tontro, an official from the Indonesian Health Ministry's bird flu information centre.

Indonesia has had 74 confirmed cases and its 57 deaths are the highest in the world. Vietnam is second with 42 deaths but has not had one this year.

Most bird flu victims globally had direct or indirect contact with sick chickens, but scientists fear the virus could mutate into a form easily transmissible among humans, sparking a global pandemic that could kill millions.

Indonesia, the world's fourth-most populous nation, was initially criticized for its failure to adequately attack the virus in poultry, but has since been lauded for taking a more aggressive approach.

Government officials have insisted their efforts to combat the disease are on the right track, although they have admitted more needs to be done, in particular with surveillance of poultry farms to stop outbreaks, described as the key element to combating the virus.

© 2006 DPA

New Zealand bird die-off from ProMed Mail

Biosecurity New Zealand has been called in to investigate the mystery
deaths of birds in Hawke's Bay as the numbers grow.

The alarm was raised after scores of dead birds were found in
Havelock North's Anderson Park. There have also been reports of dogs
and cats being found either dead or very sick.

Hawke's Bay Regional Council, which is coordinating the response to
the dead birds, confirmed reports have been received of birds dying
or close to death in other parts of Havelock North, including the Te
Mata Peak area. Residents had also reported dead birds being found
near Guthrie Park, about 2 km away from Anderson Park.

Regional council group manager Mike Adye told Hawke's Bay Today that
birds found at the park were still being tested, but the tests may
not be conclusive.

"Clearly, we are concerned about the number of birds that have died,
but we have been unable to identify the reason," he said. "We hope
that the tests will give us at least some leads. If we are able to
find a cause, it may help us to take steps to minimize the risk if it
occurs again."

Mr. Adye said that pet owners needed to consider how best to keep
their pets safe. He said mass deaths of birds were not uncommon but
that it was unusual to have such a variety of birds affected.

--

Roche says no resistance

ZURICH (MarketWatch) -- Swiss pharmaceutical company Roche Holding AG (RHHBY) Tuesday said there has been no increase in Tamiflu drug resistance observed in patients infected with the H5N1 bird flu virus.

"Over the last few months, there has been erroneous speculation that resistance to Tamiflu is increasing. This is an area that Roche and independent groups have been closely monitoring and there is no scientific evidence to suggest this is happening", said David Reddy, Roche's Influenza Pandemic Taskforce Leader.

"Governments can be confident that Tamiflu remains a critical drug, as recommended by the WHO, for stockpiling to prepare for an influenza pandemic and for physicians and patients to treat and prevent flu when it hits".

To date, there have only been three documented cases of Tamiflu resistance to avian influenza H5N1, Roche said.

In one case, the prophylactic dose (75 mg daily) rather than the treatment dose (75 mg twice daily) was given to a patient already exhibiting clinical symptoms, thus under-dosing the patient and increasing the risk of resistance, the company said.

Company Web Site: http://www.roche.com