Inolesco: The Haitian Earthquake and all the Problems

One voice, one opinion

2010-04-08T22:24:00.000-07:00

Sad editorial from Bangladesh

2007-04-12T16:27:00.000-07:00

Protect our small farmers from bird flu
SM Abdur Rahman

The problem: Bird flu has now spread from Biman's farm in Savar to seven districts. If the spread of this virus is not stopped, it will eventually wipe out all the small poultry farmers in Bangladesh. Small farms are owned by rural families, and have been set up with minimal investment. They are extremely vulnerable to bird flu infection for the following reasons:

* Small farms have open sheds, which are easily infected (because wild birds can easily enter the sheds).
* They sell their eggs and broiler chickens to traders. Traders' vehicles visit many farms everyday, and manure sticks to their wheels. As manure from infected farms carries the bird flu virus, the movement of traders' vehicles can spread bird flu very quickly from one farm to another.

Large poultry farms are far better protected against bird flu infection because they have invested in bio-secure facilities (facilities into which bacteria and viruses cannot easily enter).

* Large farms have closed tunnel-ventilated sheds. Closed sheds are unlikely to become infected by wild birds.
* Large farms own their own vehicles, whose wheels are washed and disinfected before they enter the farm. So large farms are less likely to be infected by vehicle movement.

Of course, the outbreak at Biman's farm proves that a large farm that is poorly managed (i.e. which has not implemented the above bio-security measures) can still become infected.

The initial outbreak at Biman was probably caused by a combination of two factors: poor bio-security (open poultry sheds) and the presence of large numbers of migratory waterfowl (which can carry the bird flu virus) on the nearby Jahangirnagar University campus.

The solution: To protect the livelihoods of small farmers, the spread of bird flu must be stopped. This can be accomplished by implementing the National Avian Influenza Plan (prepared last year with FAO/WHO assistance).

The plan requires the government to take strong action whenever there is a bird flu outbreak on any farm.

1. A no-movement zone must be established within a 10 km radius of the outbreak. No chickens, eggs or chicks can be allowed to leave this no-movement zone.

2. All chickens (backyard and farm) within a 3 km radius of the outbreak must be culled (killed). Even if these chickens appear healthy, it is likely that they are already infected. Culling them is necessary to stop the spread of the virus.

3. Farmers whose chickens are culled must be compensated, or they will not cooperate with the culling program.

Unfortunately, the plan has not been fully implemented in handling any of the outbreaks to date.

* Culling of poultry was carried out within 1 km of the Biman outbreak. This is less than the 3 km radius suggested by the plan.
* A 10km no-movement zone was not immediately established. This is why the disease has spread to so many districts after the original Biman outbreak.
* Subsequent outbreaks in Tangail, Jamalpur, Naranyanganj and Jessore were handled even more poorly. Poultry present within 1 km of infected farms were not culled, and a 10 km no-movement zone was not effectively established.

Necessary steps: The government is apparently not implementing the National Avian Influenza Plan because shortage of funds is making it difficult to compensate farmers. Without compensation, the culling policy cannot be implemented, and the spread of bird flu cannot be stopped. Funds must be requested from donors so that farmers can be compensated.

However, if that is the government's decision, it should be implemented strictly in all outbreaks. If the culling policy is to be less conservative, establishment of a 10 km no-movement zone becomes even more critical. These zones must immediately be established whenever and wherever there is a new outbreak.

S M Abdur Rahman is a freelance contributor to The Daily Star.

Be sure you know how to use that mask...

2007-04-11T08:08:00.000-07:00

Study shows knowledge gaps in N-95 respirator use

Apr 9, 2007 (CIDRAP News) – N-95 respirators are regarded as a key tool for protecting people from airborne influenza viruses in the event of a pandemic, but a recent study suggests that without special instruction, most people are likely to wear the devices incorrectly, limiting their effectiveness.

To gauge the public's current knowledge of how to use N-95 respirators, the researchers randomly questioned 538 people in New Orleans about their experience with the devices during hurricane clean-up and asked them to demonstrate putting on a respirator. Conducted by occupational safety experts from the Centers for Disease Control and prevention, the study appears in an early online edition of Emerging Infectious Diseases.

N-95 respirators, designed to stop at least 95% of small airborne particles, are used, among other purposes, to prevent the transmission of communicable diseases in healthcare settings and to reduce exposure to mold during flood cleanups. Donning a respirator improperly is likely to promote the leakage of unfiltered through gaps between the respirator and the skin, the authors note.

Among those interviewed for the study, 42% (233) had used a certified respirator for mold clean-up after Hurricane Katrina and 35% (192) had used N-95 models.

The respirators used in the study included written and pictorial instructions, but the volunteers were not given any additional instructions before putting them on, the report says.

In watching participants don the respirators, investigators found that only 24% (129 of 538) wore the devices properly. The most common errors were not tightening the nose clip (71%), incorrectly placing the straps (52%), and wearing the respirator upside down (22%).

Factors associated with properly wearing an N-95 respirator included male gender, Caucasian race, and being a homeowner. Proper donning technique was also associated with having had previous experience with respirators, including owning them and undergoing fit testing.

The researchers concluded that educational efforts, particularly in the workplace, could increase the public's knowledge of proper N-95 respirator use and that labeling on the respirators (as opposed to separate instructions in the package) could promote proper donning technique.

"A unique opportunity exists to enhance protection of the public through interventions, such as educational campaigns, training sessions, and respirator design modifications, aimed at improving the public's ability to don a respirator correctly," the authors write.

The US Department of Health and Human Services (HHS) has stockpiled 20 million N-95 respirators for use during an influenza pandemic and plans to add 87 million more by the end of September, according to information on the HHS Web site.

Cummings KJ, Cox-Ganser J, Riggs, MA, et al. Respirator donning in post-hurricane New Orleans. Emerg Infect Dis 2007 May (early online release);13(5): [Full text]

CSULB has plan too!

2007-04-11T07:36:00.000-07:00

Campus emergency plan isn't for the birds
Jonathan Oyama
Issue date: 4/10/07 Section: News

There is an emergency plan for Cal State Long Beach students should there be an avian flu outbreak, said a representative of the Housing & Residential Life office Monday.

Although the avian flu has not yet been carried over into the United States, as was predicted would happen in October of last year, there have been more than 200 reported cases of the avian flu in Asia from 1997 to 2006.

Director of Housing & Residential Life Stan Olin said that Maryann Rozanski, director of Safety, Risk Management and Information Security, was involved in the planning in case the avian flu spreads to CSULB.

According to Olin, Rozanski was the representative in a task force meeting at the CSU system Chancellor's Office. In the meeting, Rozanski and other representatives of the CSU system discussed what to do in case an avian flu outbreak occurs.

"CSU as a whole was trying very hard not to ignore this," Olin said. "What they had done essentially was set up lines of communication and some scenarios of what we could do if [an avian flu outbreak occurs]."

Olin said that if the avian flu spreads to the CSULB campus, the university's Emergency Operations Center has a response team that would handle the campus in case of a disaster and form a plan. University Police Chief Jack Pearson would head the center.

The Emergency Operations Center's plan states that if a disaster occurred, Pearson or his designee, Sgt. Scott Brown, would be responsible for activating the Emergency Operations Center. He would then ask the incident commander, CSULB President F. King Alexander, to start the plan.

Olin also said that one of the most difficult aspects of planning in case of a future disaster is that no one can predict what will actually happen in an emergency situation.

"If something bad happens, what we don't know is which people are going to get sick, who's not going to be here, how many people are going to be sick," Olin said. "So you have a little trouble making exact plans."

The avian influenza virus is found in wild birds' intestines and is very contagious among birds, according to the Centers for Disease Control and Prevention (CDC) Web site. The virus is spread through infected birds' saliva, nasal secretions and feces.

The CDC Web site also states that symptoms of avian influenza include typical symptoms of the flu, as well as eye infection, pneumonia, severe respiratory disease and other severe and life-threatening conditions.

However, Health Resource Center Coordinator Nop Ratanasiripong said that it is very unlikely that the avian flu would spread from Asia to Long Beach.

"It will be very unlikely, because…we have a very good prevention plan with the department of health of Long Beach," Ratanasiripong said. "The poultry industry is also very careful on [handling] poultry products like chickens, ducks and those kinds of things."

Ratanasiripong said that the FDA has regulations for foods imported into the United States and that the food is tested carefully.

Bird flu and the University

2007-04-11T07:31:00.000-07:00

University Of Alaska Fairbanks Awarded $3.8M For Bird Flu Research
Main Category: Bird Flu / Avian Flu News
Article Date: 10 Apr 2007 - 1:00 PDT

The University of Alaska Fairbanks has announced a $3.8 million award for its role in one of six National Institutes of Health Centers of Excellence for Influenza Research and Surveillance to study influenza viruses with pandemic potential, such as avian influenza H5N1.

UAF is a partner in an $18.5 million NIH National Institute of Allergy and Infectious Diseases award made to the University of California, Los Angeles for creation of the Center for Rapid Influenza Surveillance and Research.

"Our initial focus is on known avian reservoirs of influenza-A viruses such as waterfowl and shorebirds," said Jonathan Runstadler, Institute of Arctic Biology assistant professor of biology and wildlife and the lead CRISAR investigator for UAF. "However, little is known about the role of the environment and about other groups of birds in the maintenance and evolution of influenza viruses worldwide.

"We want to understand how influenza viruses evolve, adapt and are successfully transmitted in nature," said Runstadler. "No one fully understands how these viruses move around between species and in our environment."

"Alaska is recognized as a prime location for transmission and reassortment of influenza-A virus strains between birds that migrate north from both eastern and western hemispheres," said George Happ, CRISAR co-investigator and director of the NIH IDeA Network for Biomedical Research Excellence at UA, which has supported UAF's avian influenza work since 2004.

More than 450 species of migratory birds from six continents come to Alaska to nest each spring and summer. Scientists say that could provide an opportunity for exchange of bird flu viruses which could then infect humans.

"Our major goal is to understand the genetic changes of flu viruses and how those changes relate to their success in animal hosts and their persistence in the environment," said Happ. "Alaska is a critical location to study the evolution of new strains of influenza in wild birds and their movement along avian flyways. The research of Kevin Winker at the University of Alaska Museum of the North and of our CRISAR group will include surveillance to isolate potentially pandemic strains of the influenza virus."

UAF researchers expect to collect and test 4,000 samples from Alaska and another 4,000 samples from Russia and northern Japan each year for five years beginning this May. Fieldwork in the Russian Far East will be coordinated by Falk Huettmann, IAB assistant professor of wildlife ecology. Samples which test positive will be further characterized by the CRISAR group that includes UAF; University of California, Davis; UCLA; Wildlife Conservation Society; and the Los Alamos National Laboratory.

"At UAF, we will use the genetic information from UC Davis to continually refine existing studies and develop new research on the ecology of the influenza virus and the immune response of birds," Runstadler said.

The CRISAR partners together plan to collect and screen at least 20,000 cloacal samples from wild and domestic animals at key sites in the western United States and Asia each year.

###

Morbus escensio

2007-04-11T07:25:00.000-07:00

New Bird Flu Findings in Indonesia and Egypt
USAgNet - 04/10/2007

A new case of bird flu has been reported in Egypt as Indonesia reports its 74th human death from the disease. A 15-year-old Egyptian girl has been diagnosed with bird flu, according to media reports. The teenager, Marianna Kameel Mikhail from Cairo's Shubra district, was admitted to hospital last Thursday.

She is being treated with Tamiflu and is apparently in a stable condition; she had, it seems, been in contact with infected birds.

This is Egypt's 34th human victim of bird flu. Thirteen Egyptians have died.

Indonesia, meanwhile, has confirmed a 29-year-old man died of H5N1 bird flu infection, according to reports from various media outlets. This is the 74th human death in Indonesia from the virus.

Government officials say the man was hospitalized for nearly a week before passing away last Thursday. The man lived in Central Java Province, and officials believed that he might have contracted bird flu through close contact with infected poultry.

Nature continues on relentlessly

2007-04-05T07:40:00.000-07:00

Indonesian man dies of suspected bird flu

An Indonesian man who has developed bird flu symptoms died Thursday at a hospital in the Central Java town of Solo and could be the 73th bird flu casualty in the country if his blood sample is tested positive.

The patient, identified only as Suramto, 29, died at the Moewardi Hospital after being treated since March 30, reported leading news website Detikcom.

His body was packed in a plastic bag and relatives were banned from opening the coffin, a standard procedures for bird flu victims, the report said.

Source: Xinhua

Good idea, now let's just do it!

2007-04-05T07:12:00.000-07:00

State seeks volunteers for future disaster duty

By Staff and wire reports, April 4, 2007

Last updated: Wednesday, April 4, 2007 3:20 PM EDT
*

HARRISBURG — The state Health Department wants to know who would be willing to lend a hand in the event of a statewide emergency as it joins a nationwide effort to establish a registry of potential volunteers.

The department on Tuesday unveiled the State Emergency Registry of Volunteers in Pennsylvania, or SERVPA, during a news conference on emergency preparedness. The online registry will help the state build a database of volunteers with a wide range of backgrounds — including doctors, nurses, contractors and law enforcement — who can be mobilized when disaster strikes, Health Secretary Dr. Calvin B. Johnson said.

“If you have a skill or service to provide that may well be needed in the event of a disaster... we would love to have you be a part of it,” Johnson said.

The system is intended primarily for the registration of health care professionals, but states have the option of broadening their volunteer bases, Wolfson said. At least 24 other states have established registries, including Florida, Ohio, Michigan and New Jersey, he said.

The federal government’s focus on health professionals is a tip-off, according to Karen Kirk — a member of a committee organized by Cumberland County Emergency Services to prepare for the potential of an Avian flu pandemic.

“It’s a subtle point, but you’ve hit the nail on the head if you think this is aimed at Avian flu,” Kirk says. She contends there are other subtle indicators that Avian flu is a real threat.

Kirk says she saw a poster in a drug store advertising “normal tips” for avoiding seasonal flu. At the bottom of the poster, in small print, was a Web site for information on Avian flu pandemic. Kirk says larger packages of products like rice, flour and sugar are appearing on grocery store shelves — another subtle hint, she says.

“Everyone is being careful not to cause a panic,” Kirk says. But she believes official sources must become more aggressive in educating the public about the difference between seasonal flu and pandemic flu, and increasing public awareness of the potential for disaster.

Checking in advance

Tom Moriarty, another member of the county committee, has a different perspective.

He says conditions in the aftermath of Hurricane Katrina in August 2005 fuel the volunteer registry effort as a tool for any disaster.

He says the goal is to line up people with specific backgrounds who may not be retired or no longer working in their profession.

“After Katrina, doctors and nurses came to the disaster area, but they were not allowed to help because they weren’t certified in that place,” Moriarty says. “Doing this in advance will create a roster of professionals. The advance training will be to identify what a large-scale disaster will look like. How things will be handled differently if you have 10,000 people who have to be treated quickly.”

All 50 states are developing statewide volunteer registries under legislation passed by Congress in 2002 in response to the Sept. 11, 2001, terrorist attacks and the anthrax attacks that followed. The federal government is spending about $10 million on the program, dividing the money about evenly among all the states.

“There was such an outpouring of people that wanted to help, they said, ‘We really need a way of tracking them,”’ said Marc Wolfson, a spokesman for the U.S. Department of Health and Human Services.

Eliminating confusion

Pennsylvania’s online registration takes about 10 to 15 minutes. Registrants are asked whether they belong to or would like to join medical-assistance teams, how far they are willing to travel, and their occupations.

“We’d like to get people in there ahead of time, so we can check their credentials, we can do background checks, and we can even provide them with some advanced training ... so they’re prepared to deploy,” said Meghan Treber, director of the state Office of Public Health Preparedness.

Evaluating volunteers’ credentials is a critical component of the program, Johnson said. He noted that in situations such as the terrorist attacks and the aftermath of Hurricane Katrina, emergency responders sometimes had difficulty accepting help from people who simply arrived on the scene.

“Without (prior) knowledge of their skills, of their legitimacy as health-care providers or other skills, it’s hard to use them as effectively and appropriately as possible,” Johnson said. “Preparation for that in this kind of registry eliminates that kind of confusion.”

Who am I to judge?

2007-04-05T07:02:00.000-07:00

Results today; Shatti ‘mum’ on ‘bird flu positive’

KUWAIT CITY: Kuwait on Wednesday sent samples of the four Bangladeshi bird handlers to WHO laboratory in Cairo for confirmation of test results conducted in Kuwait, says Dr Ahmad Al-Shatti, spokesman for the Health Ministry. According to Dr Al-Shatti, the test results are expected on Thursday. The four workers were earlier referred to the Infectious Diseases Hospital after they showed bird-flu symptoms. Dr Al-Shatti refused to be drawn into the outcome of the preliminary tests conducted in the country. “We have sent the samples of the bird handlers to the WHO laboratory in Cairo and unless we get the results, I am not in a position to say anything. We are the sole body entrusted with announcing the outcome of positive cases of bird flu both in humans as well as in birds,” he added.

Describing the bird flu situation in the country as under control, Dr Al-Shatti said: “The bird handlers are in good health and there is no cause for concern. We have plans in place to deal with any emergent situation.”
Kuwait has so far not detected any human bird flu case. Kuwait reported outbreak of bird flu in late February and since then the authorities are combating the disease on a war-footing.
In this regard, around 1.6 million birds have been slaughtered and the four bird handlers were members of a team that is tasked with slaughtering birds mainly in Wafra area, where a majority of the positive cases were discovered.
Kuwait has around 10 million capsules of Tami flu, an anti-viral drug. Since the outbreak of bird flu in the country, the authorities have shut down the bird market in Shuwaikh in addition to banning sale of poultry products in all residential areas.
The Public Authority for Agricultural Affairs and Fish Resources together with the Ministry of Health (MoH) have formed numerous teams which visit farms across the country in order to fumigate and take samples of birds.
Agencies add:
A total of 106 cases of the strain have so far been confirmed in birds.
In November 2005, the Gulf state announced the first case of a bird infected with the H5N1 strain — a flamingo at a seaside villa.
The H5N1 strain, the most aggressive form, has killed 170 people worldwide, according to WHO, and seen millions of birds destroyed.
H5N1 is an avian influenza subtype with pandemic potential, since it might ultimately adapt into a strain that is contagious among humans.
According to samples tested by Health Ministry, no human bird flu cases were confirmed in Kuwait within the last 24 hours, said Dr Al-Shatti.
Last night, he said, the committee held its annual meeting headed by Health Minister Dr Maasouma Al-Mubarak and reviewed reports submitted by the ministry and Public Authority for Agriculture Affairs and Fish Resources (PAAAFR) regarding the flu’s latest developments.

The committee was informed about the referral of four Asian workers who interacted with birds to the Contagious Diseases Hospital, said Al-Shatti who noted that a total of 22 persons were referred to the hospital during the last five weeks. Al-Mubarak informed the committee about Kuwait leadership’s decision to compensate the owners of birds for their losses and PAAAFR’s assignment of setting guidelines for these compensations. The committee’s members lauded these steps, hoping they would boost cooperation and precautionary measures against the disease.

By Francis A. Clifford Cardozo
Arab Times Staff

So many involved in poultry industry

2007-04-04T09:32:00.000-07:00

Bangladesh says bird flu spreads despite struggle
04 Apr 2007 13:01:04 GMT

DHAKA, April 4 (Reuters) - Bangladesh said on Wednesday that bird flu had spread to a new poultry farm despite the best efforts of struggling veterinary and health workers.

"The latest farm confirmed to have H5N1 virus is in northern Jamalpur 200 km (125 miles) from the capital Dhaka," an official of the Fisheries and Livestock ministry said.

Some 72,000 chickens have been culled so far from 26 farms since the avian influenza was detected in six farms at Savar near the capital March 22.

More than 500 workers at the infected farms have been given a local version of the Tamiflu anti-viral drug as a precaution, health ministry officials said.

No humans have tested positive for the disease in the country.

Bangladesh says it has sufficient Oseflu, a local version of Tamiflu, produced and marketed by a local firm since last year.

At least 170 people have died of bird flu in 11 countries, mostly in Asia, since 2003.

Health experts fear the virus could trigger a pandemic if it mutates to form a strain that can transmit between humans.

Bangladesh has 125,000 small and large poultry firms producing 250 million broilers and 6 billion eggs annually.

About four million Bangladeshis are directly or indirectly associated with poultry farming.

The dead may help us live

2007-04-03T18:53:00.000-07:00

ndonesia considers autopsies for H5N1 victims

Apr 3, 2007 (CIDRAP News) – Indonesia's national avian influenza commission has recommended that the health ministry conduct an autopsy on each person who dies of H5N1 avian flu to learn more about how the disease affects the body, the Jakarta Post reported today.

Though experts say multiple organ failure plays a role in avian flu deaths, there are no data on humans, Bayu Krisnamurthi, chairman of the National Commission for Avian Influenza and Pandemic Preparedness, told the Post.

Postmortem examination has confirmed the role of multiple organ failure in chickens, and autopsies are needed to determine if the disease also spreads beyond the lungs in humans, Krisnamurthi said. However, he added that autopsies require careful consideration because the practice carries religious, social, and legal ramifications. Religious strictures are the main reason families refuse to allow autopsies, Krisnamurthi said.

The commission has authority only to make recommendations to the health ministry, the newspaper reported. "We hope the ministry takes this call seriously," he said.

In another development, Indonesia's trade minister said today the country was considering teaming up with Egypt to produce a human H5N1 flu vaccine, according to a Reuters report.

"Indonesia and Egypt have bird flu cases. But Egypt has more advanced pharmaceutical experience and has produced a variety of vaccines," Mari Pangestu told Reuters after a meeting with Egypt's trade delegation. "Thus, the possibility for cooperation is wide open."

In February Indonesia, amid a standoff with the World Health Organization (WHO) over sharing its H5N1 virus samples, signed a memorandum of understanding with US vaccine producer Baxter International about possible future collaboration or supply agreements.

However, on Mar 27 Indonesia agreed to resume sharing its H5N1 virus samples with the WHO, under conditions designed to give the country control over which vaccine manufacturers get access to seed viruses made from the samples.

Also today, officials in Egypt told the WHO they had ruled out the possibility of human-to-human transmission in the case of a brother and sister who were recently found to have avian flu, Reuters reported. The boy, age 4, and his sister, 6, are from Qena governorate, about 416 miles south of Cairo, according to WHO reports.

Both children had been exposed to poultry that was infected with the H5N1 virus, the Reuters report said.

"We have heard from the Ministry of Health that human-to-human transmission has been ruled out," WHO spokesman Greg Hartl told Reuters.

The brother and sister are among five Egyptian children in whom H5N1 infections were recently confirmed. All are hospitalized in stable condition, Reuters reported.

More victims in Kuwait?

2007-04-03T18:47:00.000-07:00

KUWAIT, April 3 (Reuters) - Four foreign workers in Kuwait have been admitted to hospital on fears of bird flu infection, a Health Ministry official said on Tuesday. "Four Asian workers were transferred to a hospital on suspicion of bird flu, but nothing is confirmed yet," Ahmed al-Shatti told Reuters. Shatti said the workers were part of teams culling birds in the southern region of Wafra near the Saudi border, where the H5N1 deadly strain had been found on chicken farms. Kuwait has culled more than 1.7 million birds, the official Kuwait News Agency reported. The figure represents more than two thirds of the country's egg-laying hens. Kuwait reported 106 bird flu cases in birds this year. Kuwait's zoo and poultry shops in residential areas have been closed and the import of live birds is banned. In 2005, Kuwait reported a case of bird flu in a flamingo.

AlertNet news is provided by

Delicio.us |

Countries

Kuwait profilemap

A Bangladeshi vendor carries chicken on a rickshaw to a market in Dhaka, March 29, 2007. Bangladesh has called for international help to upgrade bird flu test, an official said on Wednesday, as country battles a large outbreak of the disease in poultry.

The act of culling

2007-03-27T07:58:00.001-07:00

Bird flu spreads to more farms in Bangladesh

GG2.NET NEWS [24/03/2007]

Health workers carry away dead chickens from a poultry farm near Dhaka

BIRD FLU has spread to six poultry farms near Bangladesh`s capital, the government said yesterday (March 23), sparking a nationwide alert.

The United Nations also expressed concern.

CS Karim, the government adviser for agriculture and livestock, said among more than 42,400 poultry on the six farms in Savar, over 12,000 had died and another 21,000 had been culled over the past few days.

The H5N1 avian flu virus has not spread to other areas of the country and there was no cause for panic, he told a news conference. Savar is 25 km north of the capital.

Dr Duangvadee Sungkhobol, representative of UN`s World Health Organisation in Dhaka, said, "We are very concerned because this is a highly densely populated country where people, animals and poultry live very close".

"The government has taken aggressive measures to stop the spread of the disease and that WHO has confidence it (the government) would be able to limit the spread," she told the same news conference.

The disease was confirmed through tests by laboratories in Bangladesh and Thailand, the government said late on Thursday (March 22).

Another UN official also expressed concern.

"Maybe the outbreak of avian flu started in the country weeks or months before but the authorities took a long time to confirm it."

"We are talking to the government and relevant agencies to find out the extent of the spread of H5N1 in Bangladesh," the official said yesterday (March 23). They asked not to be identified.

Do they protest too much?

2007-03-27T07:53:00.000-07:00

I always like stories like this. Why write it if there is No bird flu?

Reports of bird flu cases are groundless -- Al-Shatti

HLT-KUWAIT-BIRD FLU
Reports of bird flu cases are groundless -- Al-Shatti

KUWAIT, March 24 (KUNA) -- Dr. Ahmad AL-Shatti, Spokesman for the Joint Committee for Combating the Spread of Bird Flu denied reports of new bird flu cases in the past 24 hours.

In a phone call with Kuwait News Agency (KUNA), Al-Shatti said that according to ongoing testing, Kuwait is currently clear of any human bird flu cases.

He confirmed team members of The Public Authority for Agriculture and Fish Resources Affairs (PAAFRA) are working round-the-clock to sterilize the radius of infected areas of some 3 kilometers in Al-Wafra.(end) fk.aa.

Fighting cocks a gamble with life

2007-03-22T09:29:00.000-07:00

From Pro-Med Mail:

Cock-fighting birds likely culprit in Mukdahan  Laos H5N1 outbreak
-----------------------------------------------
The latest bird flu epidemic in the northeastern province of Mukdahan
was most likely to have come from Sawannakhet province in Laos
through illegal cock-fighting tours, health officials said yesterday
[20 Mar 2007]. Meanwhile, the total number of local people who had
been in contact with dead poultry in 2 areas of the province's Muang
district where the H5N1 virus was confirmed has risen to 9, including
a livestock officer whose fighting cocks had died, presumably of bird flu.

Earlier, the subtype H5 was confirmed in a dead chicken in
Sawannakhet, and it was highly likely the virus had spread to
Mukdahan, said Dr Thawat Suntrajarn, the director-general of the
Department of Disease Control. There had not been a single case of
bird flu infection in the province over the past 3 years, and this
was the 1st time H5N1 was found, said Dr Prapas Veerapol, a bird flu
expert in Mukdahan. However, despite imposing stringent measures
against bringing poultry, both dead and alive, and eggs to the
province since the 1st confirmation of bird flu infection in Laos,
there was still smuggling along the Thai-Laos border, which extends
for 72 km in Mukdahan. Poultry smuggling and illegal cock-fighting
tours to Laos were 2 of the most likely channels for bird flu to have
spread to the province, Thawat said.

It was very difficult to control smugglers, who used small boats to
cross the Mekong River from Sawannakhet to Mukdahan, said Teerasuk
Nasok, a Mukdahan Port health officer. At the port, no birds or
poultry products have been allowed to be brought in since the bird
flu virus was confirmed in Laos, he said.

A source, who asked not to be named, said the cock-fighting game dens
were ordered shut down right after Laos confirmed the bird flu
epidemic, yet many local gamblers still sneaked out with their
fighting cocks for a session in Laos. A frequent gambler was the
livestock officer. A number of his fighting cocks had died, and he
himself was being watched for bird flu infection, said the source.
The results of lab tests on samples taken from the officer's poultry
were not yet known.

Seven of 8 people who had eaten a dead turkey plus the livestock
officer were given the antiviral drug Tamiflu to prevent infection. A
pregnant a woman was excluded, said Prapas. After being announced a
"disease outbreak zone" on Monday [19 Mar 2007], Mukdahan livestock
officials ordered "comb-search" testing for H5N1 virus in poultry in
every single house within a radius of one km from the 2 infected areas.

[Byline: Arthit Khwankhom]

Share and share alike

2007-03-22T09:23:00.000-07:00

BANGKOK, March 22 (Reuters) -

Thailand shares Indonesia's concerns about access to bird flu vaccines, but has not decided to restrict access to its samples of the virus, a senior Health Ministry official said on Thursday. "This morning, our health minister said he supports Indonesia, but that does not mean that we are not going to share the virus," Suwit Wibulpolprasert, a senior adviser to Health Minister Mongkol na Songkhla, told Reuters. "We support them on the basis that the virus be shared on the the basis of a equitable distribution of the products from the virus," he said. Asked if Thailand had decided to withhold samples from the World Health Organisation (WHO), Suwit said: "No, never. Definitely not." Indonesia, which has the world's highest bird flu death toll, has created a roadblock to vaccine development by demanding guarantees before sharing virus samples. Sharing of virus samples is crucial as it allows experts to study their make-up and map the evolution and geographical spread of any particular strain. Samples are also used to make vaccines. Critics say the virus-sharing scheme operated by the WHO does not guarantee poor countries access to vaccines. Suwit said Bangkok would press for an equitable deal at a meeting of the WHO and health ministers in Jakarta next week. "This will discuss how we can come up with a good solution so that the sharing of the virus can continue," Suwit said.

AlertNet news is provided by

Bangladesh economy cannot handle H5N1 outbreak

2007-03-22T08:57:00.000-07:00

Bangladesh culls 30,000 chickens after birds' death sparks bird flu fears

2007/3/22
DHAKA, Bangladesh (AP)

Bangladeshi authorities recently culled about 30,000 chickens at a state-owned farm after many died mysteriously, sparking fears of a bird flu outbreak that later proved unfounded, an official and a domestic news agency said Thursday.

Chickens at a farm owned and run by Biman Bangladesh Airlines began dying last month, prompting authorities to cull all the birds in the farm this month, an official of the country's livestock department told The Associated Press on condition of anonymity in line with official policy.

But authorities later got confirmation from at least three local laboratories that it was Exotic Newcastle, a fatal respiratory virus in birds, that caused the deaths of the chickens, the official said without providing further details.

"Initially we could not determine what happened but we didn't take any risk," the official said. "We are now contented that it's not bird flu."

Local news agency bdnews24.com reported that samples of the infected chickens have been sent to a laboratory in Thailand to reconfirm the earlier test results.

"We are convinced by the local laboratory test results. To make the results internationally convincing, we have sent the samples to a foreign laboratory," the agency quoted an unnamed government official as saying.

The agency said the virus has spread to some other private farms in Savar, an industrial zone outside the capital, Dhaka.

The virus, which is locally known as Ranikhet, is a contagious and fatal viral disease affecting all species of birds but it has no record of attacking humans. It is so deadly that many birds die without showing any signs of disease. A death rate of almost 100 percent can occur in unvaccinated poultry flocks while it can also infect and cause death even in vaccinated birds.

The South Asian nation has so far reported no cases of bird flu and it has banned import of poultry products from more than 50 countries as part of a preventive measure to check bird flu from entering the country.

An outbreak of H5N1 virus in Bangladesh could devastate the impoverished country's poultry industry, comprised of about 150,000 farms with an annual turnover of about US$750 million (euro625 million), officials said.

New cases of H5N1 noted in Pakistan

2007-03-22T08:51:00.000-07:00

Further cases of the H5N1 strain of bird flu were confirmed in the Pakistani capital after dead crows found on the streets tested positive for the virus, a senior official said Thursday.

A month after Islamabad zoo was closed due to an outbreak, the National Laboratory for Avian Influenza found that two of eight tested specimens carried the virus that can mutate and cause illness in humans, said Dr Mohammad Afzal, head of the country's livestock monitoring authority.

"I will say it is the same extension of the outbreak at the zoo that was not 100-per-cent controlled," Afzal told Deutsche Presse-Agentur dpa, adding that the samples were collected from roadsides and a park.

Officials have advised locals to get domestic and pet birds vaccinated in view of widespread backyard poultry farming that is feared to accelerate the spread of H5N1.

About two dozens birds either died or were culled at the city zoo in February to contain the virus that was thought to have emanated from seven donated peacocks. The zoo remained closed for several days during testing and vaccination of other species.

Forty chickens also died of the disease in the capital's twin city of Rawalpindi.

Pakistan suffered a major outbreak of H5N1 one year ago at poultry farms in the North-West Frontier Province, prompting a cull of 40,000 birds.

© 2007 DPA

JAPANS RESPONSE TO TAMIFLU TROUBLES

2007-03-21T06:02:00.000-07:00

Teen deaths linked to bird flu drug

Mar 21, 2007 06:24 AM

Chisaki Watanabe
Associated Press

TOKYO – Japanese doctors were warned on Wednesday against prescribing Tamiflu to teenagers after several young patients taking the bird flu-fighting drug reportedly exhibited dangerous behavior.

The Health Ministry issued emergency instructions Tuesday to a Japanese Tamiflu distributor, Chugai Pharmaceutical Co., to warn doctors not to give the drug to teenagers, a Chugai official said on condition of anonymity, citing protocol.

Chugai began distributing warnings to doctors, hospitals and pharmacies across Japan on Wednesday, the official said.

Martina Rupp, a spokeswoman for Swiss manufacturer Roche Holding AG, said the company didn't understand the Japanese government's rationale for the action.

"No causal relationship has been established between Tamiflu and these reports, and we don't see this as an appropriate course of action," Rupp told The Associated Press.

Concerns over Tamiflu, also known as oseltamivir, have spiked in Japan after a boy and a girl, both 14, fell to their deaths from their condominiums while taking the drug in separate incidents in February.

The U.S. Food and Drug Administration has said it received more than 100 reports of delirium, hallucinations and other unusual psychiatric behavior, mostly in Japanese children treated with Tamiflu, between Aug. 29, 2005, and July 6, 2006. The Japanese government has not released detailed figures.

The FDA added a new precaution to Tamiflu's label in November, bringing the U.S. label more in line with the Japanese one that already warned that such abnormal behavior could occur.

Both Roche and the FDA have said that severe cases of the flu can spark the abnormal behavior displayed by some patients.

Two 12-year-old boys also taking Tamiflu both broke legs after jumping out of their houses in separate incidents in February and March, the official said.

Tamiflu, one of the few drugs believed to be effective in treating bird flu, is widely used in Japan to treat influenza.

New cases of bird flu noted

2007-03-21T05:58:00.000-07:00

New bird flu outbreak in Myanmar

YANGON, Myanmar (AP) — The U.N. reported a new outbreak of bird flu in Myanmar on Wednesday and called for more stringent measures to control the spread of the deadly H5N1 virus.

About 1,600 chickens contracted the virus and died during the weekend at a farm in Nyaunghnapin, about 40 kilometers (25 miles) north of Yangon, Myanmar's largest city, said Tang Zang Ping, the Myanmar representative for the United Nations' Food and Agriculture Organization.

Authorities slaughtered the farm's remaining 20,700 birds as a precautionary measure, he said.

"We need to impose stricter control on the movement of poultry, poultry products, chicken feed, eggs and even the trucks that carry these materials," Tang told The Associated Press.

The Livestock Breeding and Veterinary Department said in a statement that the virus might have spread in the farm, located in Hmawyby township, through contaminated trays used to carry eggs or small birds, the New Light of Myanmar reported Wednesday.

Warning about bioterrorism

2007-03-20T17:20:00.000-07:00

Interpol official warns of bioterror threat

Mar 20, 2007 (CIDRAP News) – Interpol's top official said yesterday that evidence collected from terrorists suggests that international law enforcement agencies should be ready to respond to chemical and biological attacks.

Ronald K. Noble, Interpol secretary-general, told a reporter from Gulf News, a newspaper based in the United Arab Emirates, that training materials recovered from Al Qaida investigations and information from captured operatives suggest that terrorist groups have had plans to launch bioterrorist attacks. Noble made the comments at an Interpol bioterrorism prevention workshop for the Middle East and North Africa, which is being held this week in Muscat, Oman. Interpol is the world's largest international organization of police agencies.

The goals of 3-day meeting in Oman are to educate senior law enforcement officials about bioterrorism prevention and response and provide them with guidance from international scientific and legal experts, according to an Interpol press release yesterday. Similar Interpol workshops have been held in South Africa, Singapore, Chile, and Ukraine.

"I have no doubt that the threat of bioterrorism is real and that we need to do more to prepare countries," Noble said in the press release.

Terrorists in Iraq recently perpetrated three chlorine bomb attacks, and "it is not difficult to imagine these attacks being extended from chemical to biological," Noble told Gulf News. "Nobody really knows when al Qaida will strike with chemical or biological weapons, but it is just a matter of time before the terrorists believe they are ready," he said, adding that the only restraint the terrorists face is the technical complexity of launching effective attacks.

In January, British intelligence officials warned the country's laboratory officials that Islamic terrorists may try to steal deadly viruses to mount biological attacks, the London Daily Mail reported on Jan 25.

Labs that handle infectious disease pathogens such as polio, rabies, tuberculosis, and avian flu were told that their security measures would be reviewed by law enforcement, the newspaper reported. The story said Britain's MI5 security service had warned government officials that al Qaida operatives were training in bioterrorism and that the group had apparently tried to recruit university students to gain access to labs.

Hong Kong Baby has Flu

2007-03-20T16:18:00.000-07:00

Baby in Hong Kong infected with H9N2 avian flu

Mar 20, 2007 (CIDRAP News) – Hong Kong officials have reported that a 9-month-old girl is infected with the strain of avian influenza known as A/H9N2, which has caused mild human illness in the city three times before and is considered capable of evolving into a pandemic strain.

The Hospital Authority in Hong Kong said the baby girl has only mild symptoms but is in isolation at Princess Margaret Hospital, according to an Agence France-Presse (AFP) report today.

Thomas Tsang, head of the Hong Kong Centre for Health Protection, said test results today confirmed that the virus is H9N2, according to the story.

The same strain infected two girls in Hong Kong in 1999 and a 5-year-old boy there in 2003; all had mild illnesses and recovered.

Tsang said the baby girl became ill Mar 4 with an upper respiratory tract infection and fever and was hospitalized at United Christian Hospital from Mar 6 to 9, AFP reported. The story did not make clear when she was admitted to Princess Margaret Hospital.

The Hospital Authority said it was "very concerned" about the case and that United Christian Hospital would "conduct a review" of all healthcare workers who had close contact with the girl, according to AFP.

A report from Deutsche Presse-Agentur (DPA) today said the girl was believed to have contracted the virus from a market in a densely populated area of Hong Kong.

The AFP report quoted Tsang as saying in a statement, "Further genetic sequencing is being conducted to determine if the virus is completely of avian origin. This is an isolated case and the source of infection is being investigated. Based on previous experience, however, we will look especially into bird-to-human transmission."

The Centre for Health Protection said the girl's family members were well and she had not been taken outside Hong Kong recently, according to AFP.

In 2004 the US National Institute of Allergy and Infectious Diseases (NIAID), concerned that H9N2 could evolve into a pandemic strain, contracted with Chiron Corp. (now part of Novartis) to produce a vaccine against the virus. Last September scientists reported that the experimental vaccine generated a good immune response in a phase 1 clinical trial.

The contract called on Chiron to make 40,000 doses of the vaccine, based on an inactivated strain of H9N2 developed by the Centers for Disease Control and Prevention.

The report on the clinical trial results said H9N2 viruses are widespread in Eurasian poultry. Two of the three different Asian lineages of these viruses can bind to human as well as bird cell receptors (sialic acid residues) and therefore may be more likely to infect humans than other avian flu viruses are, the authors wrote.

The H9N2 strain of avian flu is distinct from the lethal Asian strain of H5N1 virus, which has killed millions of poultry in Asia, Africa, and Europe and caused 281 human illness cases, 169 of them fatal, according to the World Health Organization's current tally.

Kuwait Bird flu cases rising

2007-03-17T16:24:00.000-07:00

Kuwait confirms new bird flu case

Kuwait confirmed today a new case of the deadly H5N1 strain of bird flu in a chicken, raising to 54 the number of infected birds found this year, the health ministry said in a statement.

The Gulf Arab state has closed down poultry shops in residential areas and banned the import of live birds to prevent an outbreak.

Reuters

Afganistan chimes in with bird flu case

2007-02-24T20:56:00.000-08:00

H5N1 bird flu confirmed in Afghanistan
KABUL, Afghanistan, Feb. 24 (UPI) -- The presence of the deadly strain of bird flu in eastern Nangarhar province has been confirmed by Afghanistan's Health Ministry.

Voice of America reported Saturday that the H5N1 strain of the avian virus was confirmed on Friday by Health Ministry Deputy Faizullah Kakar.

VOA said a team of doctors had initially suspected that the virus had made its way to a human, however, it was found that the patient was actually suffering from malaria.

Earlier this week, Afghan authorities ordered the slaughter of birds in the Nangarhar and Kunar provinces after suspecting an outbreak of bird flu. There was another outbreak of the virus in Afghanistan last year that was confined to birds.

The deadly H5N1 strain of the bird flu virus has killed about 160 humans worldwide since 2003.

Copyright 2007 by United Press International

Here kitty, kitty, kitty...

2007-02-07T08:03:00.000-08:00

Embassy: Indonesia Cat May Spread Bird Flu

Wednesday, February 07, 2007

JAKARTA, Indonesia — The U.S. Embassy in Indonesia is advising Americans to avoid contact with stray cats in the country, citing confirmed reports of the animals carrying the deadly bird flu virus.

In a posting on its Web site Wednesday, the embassy addressed the risk from the H5N1 virus in Indonesia, where that strain of bird flu is endemic in chickens and has killed more humans than in other nation.

"There have been confirmed reports that wild and stray cats have been shown to carry H5N1," the embassy said. "While there have been no documented cases of feline-to-human transmission of H5N1, it is important to avoid contact with wild and stray cats."

The World Heath Organization had no immediate comment.

Last year, South Korea slaughtered wild cats as part of its efforts to prevent the spread of bird flu in poultry. U.N. food and agriculture officials criticized the move as not based on science.

The embassy said that cats that "reside mainly inside a residence" were not seen to be at risk of catching H5N1. The virus has killed 163 people around the world, around one-third of them in Indonesia.

Copyright 2007 The Associated Press.

What's going on in Egypt?

2007-02-07T08:00:00.000-08:00

FACTBOX-Bird flu's spread around the globe
07 Feb 2007 11:01:34 GMT
Source: Reuters

Feb 7 (Reuters) - The World Health Organisation (WHO) has confirmed that bird flu killed a 17 year-old Egyptian woman.

The new case brings to 20 the number of people known to have been infected with bird flu in Egypt, which has the largest known cluster of human cases outside Asia.

H5N1 was also found to have been responsible for the deaths of 2,500 turkeys on a farm in eastern England -- the first outbreak in British poultry.

The outbreak of highly pathogenic H5N1 avian influenza began in Asia in 2003 and has spread rapidly over the past year.

Following are some facts about the H5N1 avian flu virus and its spread around the globe.

* Since the virus re-emerged in Asia in 2003, outbreaks have been confirmed in around 50 countries and territories, according to data from the World Organisation for Animal Health.

* More than 30 countries have reported outbreaks in the past year, in most cases involving wild birds such as swans.

* The virus has killed 166 people since 2003, according to WHO. Countries with confirmed human deaths are: Azerbaijan, Cambodia, China, Egypt, Indonesia, Iraq, Nigeria, Thailand, Turkey and Vietnam.

* In total, the virus is known to have infected 272 people since 2003, according to WHO. Many of those who have died are children and young adults.

* Vietnam and Indonesia have the highest number of cases, accounting for 105 of the total deaths.

* The H5N1 virus is not new to science and was responsible for an outbreak of highly pathogenic avian influenza in Scotland in 1959. Britain confirmed new cases in Scotland in April 2006 and in Suffolk earlier this month.

* H5N1 is not the only bird flu virus. There are numerous strains. For example, an outbreak in 2003 of the H7N7 bird flu virus in the Netherlands led to the destruction of more than 30 million birds, around a third of the country's poultry stock. About 2.7 million were destroyed in Belgium and around 400,000 in Germany. In the Netherlands, 89 people were infected with the H7N7 virus, of whom one (a veterinarian) died.

* The H5N1 virus made the first known jump into humans in Hong Kong in 1997, infecting 18 people and killing six of them. The government ordered the immediate culling of the territory's entire poultry flock, ending the outbreak.

* Symptoms of bird flu in humans have ranged from typical influenza-like symptoms, such as fever, cough, sore throat and muscle aches, to eye inflammations (conjunctivitis), pneumonia, acute respiratory distress, viral pneumonia, and other severe and life-threatening complications. (Sources: OIE, WHO, Centers for Disease Control and Prevention)

AlertNet news is provided by Reuters

Pakistan has a new outbreak

2007-02-07T07:57:00.000-08:00

A fresh outbreak of bird flu has been confirmed in the Pakistani city of Rawalpindi, a year after thousands of chickens were culled to contain the disease, news reports said Wednesday.

Forty birds at a poultry farm in Islamabad's twin city died of the H5N1 strain or were killed while infected, according to the Ministry of Food, Agriculture and Livestock.

Pakistan's first recorded cases of bird flu were found in February 2006 in the North-West Frontier Province, prompting authorities to cull 40,000 chickens.

The prevention measures reportedly cost poultry farmers and related industries almost 200 million dollars.

Experts fear the disease could mutate and infect the human population, causing a global pandemic that would wipe out hundreds of millions of people.

According to latest figures released by the World Health Organization, the H5N1 strain has claimed the lives of 163 people, mainly in Asian countries.

© 2007 DPA

Veterinarian does not have bird flu

2007-02-07T07:56:00.001-08:00

Vet tests negative for bird flu

By Andrew Jack, Jenny Wiggins and Fiona Harvey in London,and Chris Condon in Budapest

Published: February 7 2007 02:00 | Last updated: February 7 2007 10:00

A vet called in to deal with the outbreak of bird flu in Suffolk after he was admitted to hospital with what was described as a “mild respiratory illness”, has not been infected with the H5N1 virus, the Health Protection Agency said on Wednesday.

“We are confirming that he has tested negative for avian flu and for normal flu,” a spokeswoman for the agency said. “He will now be treated as a normal patient.” a spokesperson said.

ADVERTISEMENT

The European Commission had earlier criticised countries imposing blanket bans on UK poultry, even as fresh import restrictions were announced.

Michael Mann, an EU spokesman, said the embargoes were unjustified after member states agreed that culling and transport restrictions in eastern England and southern Hungary were sufficient precautions. No EU state has imposed bans but some tightened domestic prevention measures.

Ukraine on Tuesday followed Japan, Russia, South Korea and Hong Kong in stopping imports, while other countries including Indonesia, Ireland, Macedonia and Bosnia said they were introducing or considering partial bans.

The action came after the cull of 160,000 birds at the Bernard Matthews turkey farm in Holton triggered by the detection of the H5N1 bird flu virus late last week, while exclusion zones were maintained and investigations continued into the source of infection.

Hungary's agriculture ministry and Bernard Matthews in Hungary said there was no link between the outbreaks in the UK and Hungary, where the company also has operations, and an outbreak was identified at a goose farm in January.

Bernard Matthews owns Saga Food, a meat processing company in western Hungary and about 200km from where the infected geese were discovered.

The ministry said the government had investigated a possible connection but found no evidence of infection or movement of products or personnel between Saga and the Suffolk plant.

The company said it had been co-operating closely with Defra and that there were no jobs at risk.

Meanwhile Indonesia confirmed it was withholding from foreign laboratories samples of the H5N1 virus strains that have killed several people this year.

Jakarta said it would make genetic data available, but in the build-up to a deal with Baxter, the US pharmaceutical group, set to be unveiled today, it would not share virus samples for free.

Copyright The Financial Times Limited 2007

Declaring war on Turkeys

2007-02-04T15:32:00.000-08:00

World braced for huge surge in bird flu cases

· 160,000 turkeys slaughtered on farm
· Don't panic over food, plead experts
· Concern at delay in informing Defra

Robin McKie and Nick Mathiason
Sunday February 4, 2007
The Observer

All the turkeys on the affected farm near Lowestoft will be culled. Photograph: Chris Young/PA

The number of cases of the deadly bird flu virus is increasing around the world as scientists struggle to combat the disease that is now threatening to jump species and infect humans. The news comes as Britain confirmed its first ever case of H5N1 in a farm in Suffolk. More than 160,000 birds will now be slaughtered as the country's farming industry goes on high alert for more outbreaks.

As the authorities responded to the outbreak in Suffolk, local residents questioned why it had taken some 48 hours after the first chicks died last Tuesday for the government's Department of Food and Rural Affairs, Defra, to be informed. But there was also wider concern. Japan and Nigeria have reported a series of cases of the lethal virus, and China, Egypt, Russia, South Korea and Vietnam have also revealed outbreaks in birds and in humans in the past two months. Indonesia began a mass bird cull in the capital city of Jakarta last Wednesday. At least 164 people are now known to have been killed by the disease across the globe.

The rapid spread of avian flu can be traced to the fact that the H5N1 virus is mutating as it spreads through birds and a variety of mammals including cats, tigers and pigs, said Robert Webster, a researcher at St Jude Children's Research Hospital, in Memphis, Tennessee.

Last night British health officials insisted the risk to the public was still negligible. It set in motion a series of emergency measures aimed at halting the spread of the disease among poultry in Britain. All the turkeys on the affected farm at Holton near Lowestoft, the largest poultry centre run by the breeder Bernard Matthews, are now being culled. Yesterday, piles of slaughtered birds were being scooped into open tractor trailers before being removed for incineration.

An exclusion zone of three-kilometres (nearly two miles) has been set up around the farm. All poultry in the area are to be kept indoors and tested for the H5N1 virus. A further 10km zone has been established in which all movements of poultry are banned, and last night another 2,090sq km restriction zone was created to isolate poultry from wild birds. Other measures will include a ban on bird shows, poultry markets and pigeon racing. This follows a decision by Defra to revoke the national general licence on bird gatherings.

Last night, the National Farmers' Union president, Peter Kendall, said his organisation had warned members to be vigilant. A spokesman for Matthews said his organisation could confirm there had been a case of H5N1 avian influenza at its Holton site. But he added: 'It is important to stress that there is no risk to consumers.'

Dr Andrew Landeg, the government's deputy chief veterinary officer, revealed he had called in ornithologists in a bid to understand how wild fowl - now thought to be the most likely source of the Suffolk outbreak - might have carried the virus into one of the 22 turkey breeding sheds at the farm. Officials also needed to know what other areas of the country might now be at risk of outbreaks.

Last night, it was revealed that Defra had identified several areas in Britain considered to be at particular risk of picking up H5N1 from infected wild fowl. The farm at Horton was one of them.

Avian flu expert Dr Colin Butter of the Institute of Animal Health said it was now crucial that veterinary scientists discover whether the farm was the first place this strain of flu had emerged. It could be that the outbreak was an 'unhappy chance event', or it could indicate a significant level of the disease in wild birds indigenous to the UK, which in turn would make the virus harder to stamp out. Exclusion zones and culling would not be sufficient to contain the virus, Butter added.

However, Landeg yesterday ruled out the alternative - the introduction of vaccinations for poultry, a measure already introduced in Holland - as being ineffective.

As a result, farmers with free-range flocks may face serious threats to their livelihood. However, one organic poultry producer said moves to house birds permanently indoors would be counter-productive. 'My birds are resistant to the range of diseases that affect conventional flocks because their immune systems have been boosted through living outdoors. I accept that as a new strain of bird flu, special measures may be required in the short-term, but these should not be at the expense of the principles of good husbandry.'

However, Landeg yesterday insisted that the disease could be contained. 'There's a good hope, if this is not the first case, we will be able to contain this disease.'

It was revealed last night that five people in Indonesia have died from the virus since the beginning of the year while Japan yesterday confirmed its fourth outbreak of H5N1 bird flu this year and Thailand has reported three outbreaks during the past month.

2007-02-03T15:33:00.000-08:00

Tests show bird flu is H5N1 virus

The avian flu which killed 2,600 turkeys at a Suffolk farm has been confirmed as the H5N1 virus.

The strain can be fatal if it is passed on to humans but experts said the outbreak was being contained and posed little danger to people.

A spokesman for Bernard Matthews, which runs the farm in Holton, said none of the affected birds had entered the food chain and there was no risk to health.

The 159,000 other turkeys on the farm will now have to be slaughtered.

The Department for Environment, Food and Rural Affairs and the European Commission carried out virus tests at laboratories in Weybridge, Surrey.

A three-kilometre protection zone and a 10km surveillance zone will be set up around Holton, which is approximately 27km south-west of Lowestoft.

A Defra statement said further tests to characterise the virus were under way in order to ascertain whether or not it is the Asian strain.

It is the first case on a UK commercial farm of an H5N1 infection. The strain has killed 164 people worldwide - mainly in south-east Asia - since 2003.

However, the virus is not thought to be able to pass easily from human to human at present.

So far, all those who have been infected worldwide have come into intimate contact with infected birds.

Vaccinations

Fred Landeg, Britain's Deputy Chief Veterinary Officer, said an investigation was under way but the most likely source of the outbreak was wild birds.

He told BBC News that vaccinations for poultry were not currently being considered.

"There are a number of problems with vaccination in that it takes about three weeks to get immunity."

Mr Landeg said the turkeys at the farm had been too young to enter the food chain and no birds or produce had moved off the site.

Dr Maria Zambon, from the Health Protection Agency, said farm workers who had come into contact with infected birds, and those involved in the culling process, would be offered the anti-viral drug Tamiflu as a precaution.

She stressed that nobody had developed symptoms of bird flu following similar outbreaks among farm birds in continental Europe.

Vets were called to the Bernard Matthews farm on Thursday night.

The company said it was confident the outbreak had been contained and there was no risk to consumers.

National Farmers Union president Peter Kendall told BBC News 24 the priority would be eradicating the outbreak.

"[We will be] making sure we get the message across about how well this will be managed and controlled.

"We're encouraging all farmers to be incredibly vigilant, look at their flocks carefully and we do need to reassure consumers that this is not an issue about the safety of poultry - it's completely safe to eat."

Defra has revoked the national general licence on bird gatherings and bird shows and pigeon racing will not be permitted.

Detergent

Professor John Oxford, a virologist at the London Queen Mary's School of Medicine and Dentistry, said he was confident the outbreak could be contained.

He said: "I don't think it has made any difference as a threat to the human population. The most likely explanation is that a small bird has come in through a ventilation shaft.

"One good thing about this virus is that it's easily destroyed. You can kill it with a bit of detergent."

Dr Oxford also said that while four strains of the H5N1 virus have been identified so far, all are deadly to birds and show potential of being harmful to humans.

He said that identifying the particular strain found in Suffolk will help scientists work out how the disease is moving around the world.

In May last year, more than 50,000 chickens were culled after an outbreak of the H7 bird flu in farms in the neighbouring county of Norfolk.

One member of staff at the farm contracted the disease and was treated for an eye infection.

In March 2006, a wild swan found dead in Cellardyke, Fife, was found to have the H5N1 strain of the virus.

For more information call the Defra Helpline on 08459 33 55 77

Scene of outbreak

All poultry to be culled

Visitors disinfected and restricted access

3km Protection Zone

Poultry kept indoors and tested

10km Surveillance Zone

No movement of poultry to or from area except for slaughter

Rail transport restricted to non-stopping movements

Bird fairs and markets banned

Increased surveillance of wetland areas

Domestic birds not to share water used by wild birds

Footpath restrictions likely only on free-range farms

People in towns not affected unless they keep poultry.

Source: Defra

Tamiflu flowing into the waterways?

2007-02-01T08:30:00.000-08:00

Avian flu antiviral could cause resistant strain
01/02/2007 10:00:00
FWi

Scientists warn that wide-spread use of the avian flu antiviral, Tamiflu, could cause a resistant strain of the virus to develop in wild birds and threaten poultry flocks.

The team of scientists from the Centre for Ecology and Hydrology (CEH), Oxford, predicts that a build up of Tamiflu in rivers could force wildlife and the natural environment to become resistance to the drug, resulting in a mutant strain of the virus developing.

Andrew Singer, lead researcher, CEH, said: “An antiviral drug has never been widely used before, so we need to determine what might happen. During a flu pandemic, millions of people will all take Tamiflu at the same time. Over just 8 or 9 weeks, massive amounts of the drugs will be expelled in the sewage and find its way into the rivers. It could have huge effects on the fish and other wildlife.”

The team estimates that 80% of Tamiflu is excreted in urine and faeces, and it is able to withstand degradation for several weeks. Therefore, one proposed solution is to use a pre-treatment in the toilet bowl to prevent the antiviral transferring into the waterways.

To see the full report, visit www.ehponline.org

Add Nigeria to nations with human dead from bird flu

2007-01-31T16:28:00.001-08:00

Nigeria confirms its first human case of avian flu

Jan 31, 2007 (CIDRAP News) – Nigerian officials confirmed today that a 22-year-old woman died of H5N1 avian influenza, making Nigeria the third African country to have a human case, after Egypt and Djibouti.

The woman was from Lagos, the nation's largest city, a government minister told news services.

"Last night our team of 13 scientists were able to conclusively identify the case of avian influenza," Nigerian Information Minister Frank Nweke said at a press conference today, according to a BBC News report. He said samples from the woman would be sent to other laboratories, including the World Health Organization (WHO), for further review.

The woman fell ill after de-feathering and disemboweling an infected chicken, Reuters reported. She died Jan 17, according to Agence France-Presse (AFP).

Nigeria announced 2 days ago it was conducting H5N1 tests on samples from 14 patients, including 3 who died of suspected avian flu and 11 who were exposed to them. The 22-year-old and her mother were two of the victims, according to Reuters. Other news services have said a woman from Taraba state was the third. A WHO official had said preliminary tests were negative and samples were sent to a lab in Britain for further testing.

Earlier reports said the mother and daughter from Lagos had died within 2 weeks after eating chicken bought from a live-bird market during the holidays. An AllAfrica News report had said the family slaughtered the chickens after one died mysteriously.

Africa's first experience with H5N1 avian flu came in 2006 with poultry outbreaks in several countries, plus 18 human cases in Egypt and 1 in Djibouti. Egypt has had 19 cases with 11 deaths, including one fatal case so far this year.

Nigeria has been hit hard by bird outbreaks, with 17 of 36 states affected so far, according to Reuters. A July 2006 report in Nature said the H5N1 virus had entered Nigeria three different times, possibly carried by migratory birds. But the report also said international poultry trade could have been a factor.

WHO spokesperson Gregory Hartl said a human case of avian flu in Nigeria is no surprise, because many poultry flocks live close to humans, much as in Indonesia, which has been hit hard by poultry outbreaks and human cases, Reuters reported.

"It does not change anything from a public health point of view. It had to happen sooner or later," Hartl told Reuters.

At a donors' conference in Bamako, Mali, in December, World Bank officials urged donors to focus their funding on African countries because they are economically weaker and less able to respond to avian flu threats.

In other avian flu news, Japan confirmed today that its third poultry outbreak this winter was caused by H5N1, according to Canadian Press. The outbreak at a chicken farm in Okayama prefecture, about 340 miles west of Tokyo, is Japan's second confirmed outbreak in a week.

The country's first two recent outbreaks occurred in Miyazaki prefecture in southwestern Japan, the country's main poultry-producing area. The fresh round of outbreaks is Japan's first in 3 years.

In Hungary, where an outbreak in some geese was the first European appearance of H5N1 this winter, the outbreak strain is 99.4% similar to the strain found in some European countries in 2006, the World Organization for Animal Health (OIE) reported yesterday in a news release. The finding came from the OIE reference lab in Weybridge, England.

"This information tells us that the genetic characterization of the virus isolated in Hungary has still not mutated significantly," said OIE Director Bernard Vallat.

Meanwhile, government officials in Indonesia said they may declare avian flu a national disaster, AFP reported today. Indonesia has had six avian flu deaths this season, which has prompted a ban on backyard poultry in Jakarta, effective tomorrow.

Declaring avian flu a national disaster would pave the way for centralized measures and greater funding, Planning Minister Paskah Suzetta told the state news agency, Antara, today. He added that the recent avian flu outbreak meets national disaster criteria because it has caused many casualties and its spread could not be contained.

Russia chimes in with H5N1

2007-01-30T17:21:00.000-08:00

H5N1 avian flu detected in Russia
30/01/2007 16:30:00
FWi

Russia experienced its first case of H5N1 avian flu this year, confirmed the Russian agricultural agency, Rosselkhoznadzor, on Monday (29 January).

The Russian news agency, RIA-Novosti, quoted Alexei Alekseyenko, Rosselkhoznadzor chief spokesman, as stating: “Deaths of domestic fowl were registered at three farmsteads. Lab analysis revealed the H5N1 bird flu virus strain.”

The three farms are located in the Krasnodar region, southern Russia, according to a statement issued by Rosselkhoznadzor.

by Caroline Lovell

From the US State Department news of bird flu

2007-01-28T22:00:00.001-08:00

Bird Flu (Avian Influenza)

Indonesian officials take samples from chicken at a poultry market January 24 in Indonesia. Five people in Indonesia have died from the virus since the start of 2007. (© AP Images)Avian Influenza Causes More Human Deaths in Indonesia, EgyptU.S. Navy scientists and their Egyptian partners working in Cairo are helping confirm new human cases of highly pathogenic avian influenza in North Africa and the Middle East, and are building laboratory capacity in that region and elsewhere to allows scientists and technicians in many countries to quickly identify and diagnose human illness that arises from outbreaks of deadly bird flu in Asia and Egypt. More Bird Flu Deaths in Humans Reported as Milestone Is PassedIndonesian health authorities are reporting another human death from a dangerous strain of avian influenza -- the fourth in that nation in 2007, according to case histories compiled by the World Health Organization. Indonesia’s latest deaths push its fatalities from this strain of bird flu -- H5N1-- to 61, the highest number for any of the 10 countries where humans have become infected with the virus.

From the US State Department news of bird flu

2007-01-28T22:00:00.000-08:00

Its Baaack!

2007-01-28T18:36:00.000-08:00

The Agricultural Ministry last Wednesday confirmed that the deadly H5N1 strain of the bird flu virus has once more been discovered in Hungary, the first time the disease has been detected in the European Union since August 2006. The virus broke out on a goose farm in Csongrád County, southeast Hungary, earlier in the week. Around 40 birds fell sick or died and samples from the deceased animals were brought to Budapest for testing.

“The laboratory has detected the highly-pathogenic H5 virus, and according to tests so far it looks like the N1 strain,” the ministry said in statement.
Samples have been sent to the EU’s official laboratory in Weybridge, England, for further tests and the EU has been officially informed of the situation.
All of the 3,300 geese on the farm have been culled since the new outbreak was discovered and a 3km protective zone – with police roadblocks checking cars – and a 10km surveillance zone have been established around the farm.
The ministry said that the measures brought into place so far were satisfactory, and that further restrictions or culls would not be necessary. The European Commission said it was also satisfied by the measures and that there was no “immediate threat” to Hungarian poultry or exports.
However, neighbouring Croatia and Serbia appeared not to be calmed by the preventative measures, and last Wednesday they froze all poultry imports from Hungary as a precautionary measure. The poultry industry suffered a serious drop in sales during the last bird flu scare, and a further prolonged outbreak could cause more damage.
Hungary’s problems were further compounded by the news that Japan had banned the import of Hungarian pork after swine fever was discovered in three wild boars in North Hungary. The CEO of Pick Szeged, László Kovács, said that Japan was one of Hungary’s key export markets, and that a ban on Hungarian pork exports could cause a major crisis in the industry.
Hungary saw its first cases of bird flu in February 2006, when it cropped up amongst wild birds. The disease spread to domestic poultry, and hundreds of thousands of birds were culled. All protective measures were cancelled in August last year when no more cases were reported. The last reported case of bird flu in the EU was uncovered in a wild bird in Germany in August 2006, but there have been continued cases across Asia.
According to the latest figures released by the World Health Organization, the H5N1 strain has claimed the lives of 163 people. Experts fear the disease could mutate and cause a global pandemic that would wipe out hundreds of millions of people.
Michael Logan

Thats where our money goes. Hopefully it helps!

2007-01-28T14:55:00.000-08:00

Avian Flu contingency and UNDP assistance

Sun, 2007-01-28 06:05

Colombo, 28 January, (Asiantribune.com): To prepare for and activate a disaster management plan in the event of an avian influenza outbreak in Sri Lanka, UNDP in collaboration with the Food and Agriculture Organisation (FAO) has set up a project to create awareness among poultry farmers and the public.

The highly pathogenic H5N1 avian influenza (HPAI) virus first emerged in 1997. Flocks of wild birds, domestic poultry, and some humans were affected in parts of Southeast Asia, Africa and Europe. The exact roles played by migratory birds in the spread of avian flu to domestic poultry and humans remain uncertain and continue to be debated. Sri Lanka cannot afford to be complacent because a wide range of migratory birds arrive every year from far away lands to their favorite roosting places on the island.

UNDP commissioned the services of an expert consultant Dr.Sarath Arambawela to work with FAO on specific tasks related to the disaster management plan in the event of an Avian Flu epidemic in Sri Lanka. Dr.Arambawela has worked as a government veterinary surgeon in the Department of Animal Production and Health (DAPH), and later as the Project Director of the ADB assisted Livestock Development Project in Sri Lanka.

Under the Avian Influenza project, as a first step a capacity building exercise for the officers of the DAPH was initiated. UNDP provided funds to set up a programme of action to prevent an epidemic and also to handle a crises situation, if Sri Lanka were to face an Avian Influenza & Human Influenza outbreak.

“We have informed the poultry farmers to be watchful of an increase in mortality and if there is a significant drop in the intake of water and meals. Poultry keepers have been asked not to handle sick birds, instead to call a veterinarian immediately,” Those who come into contact with affected birds should wash their hands with soap and water as a first aid,” Dr. Arambawela said.

Further a disaster management plan that has been set up to handle the problem will focus on three major areas. Detailed district maps indicating the numbers of poultry units, categorized as ‘commercial’, ‘smallholder’ and ‘backyard’, and the total poultry population in each Grama Niladari (village officer’s) area.

A register in every government veterinary office will indicate the name and address of each poultry producer and a farm card will be issued to every registered poultry producer, to facilitate payment of compensation in event of mandatory mass culling of farm birds.

Some of the main aspects covered under the currently operational projects are:

* Strengthening of sample collection and laboratory diagnostic activities; production of communication and training material

* Registration of poultry production units and mapping of poultry production and marketing systems

* Organizing district emergency teams and depopulation/decontamination teams and training them further with the assistance of an international consultant; arranging a scheme for compensating owners of the live birds that will have to be culled in case of disease incursion.

* Learning from the experience of countries which had controlled HPAI outbreaks successfully

Apart from these, strict import restrictions and quarantine inspections are undertaken with existing resources, which are to be further strengthened with World Bank assistance. USAID too assists the Department of Animal Production and Health to develop infrastructure and build its capacity to identify and conduct tests in case of an outbreak.

- Asian Tribune -

Disinformation or information? No way to know for sure!

2007-01-28T14:49:00.000-08:00

INFORMATION ABOUT BIRD FLU SPREAD IN AZERBAIJAN IS NOT TRUE, MINISTER OF AGRICULTURE
[January 28, 2007, 14:12:09]

Azerbaijan Minister of Agriculture Ismat Abbasov said information about spread of the deadly bird flu virus across the country is not true.

Commenting on results of the tests on a 14-year-old boy from Salyan province, suspected of having contracted the H5N1 virus, the Minister said they proved negative.

The boy was hospitalized after he fell sick with a high temperature, and local doctors feared he might have contracted bird flu.

But analysis carried out by the Ministry of Agriculture’s Veterinary Service and Ministry of Health found no signs of H5N1.

Another Day of H5N1 Outbreak News

2007-01-28T14:43:00.000-08:00

New Bird Flu Outbreak In Japan Is H5N1

Article Date: 28 Jan 2007 - 8:00 PST

Authorities in Japan have confirmed that a new bird flu outbreak in Hyuga, southern Miyazakito prefecture, was caused by H5N1 infection, the virulent bird flu virus strain. Another possible H5N1 case has also appeared in a farm in Takahashi, Okayama prefecture, where 22 chickens have died during this weekend.

The Takahashi farm has about 12,000 chickens.

News of this second outbreak appeared just hours after the Agriculture, Forestry and Fisheries Ministry confirmed H5N1 in the first outbreak. Authorities are asking bordering farms to stop moving livestock.

50,000 chickens are being culled in the area where the the first outbreak occured.

H5N1 infection among birds was detected in Japan in February 2003. Since then there have been occasional outbreaks.

Scientists worry that the H5N1 bird flu virus strain may one day mutate and become easily human transmissible. The most likely way it could do this would be to infect a human who already has the normal flu. The bird flu virus would then have the opportunity to exchange genetic information with the normal human flu virus and acquire its ability to spread easily from person-to-person. If this happened we could then be facing a serious global flu pandemic.

So far, humans do not catch bird flu easily from birds, and for a human to infect another human is extremely rare.

Written by: Christian Nordqvist
Editor: Medical News Today

Poultry workers should wear protective goggles

2007-01-02T19:01:00.000-08:00

Study strongly advises goggles to protect against bird flu

Last Updated: Monday, January 1, 2007 | 2:10 PM PT

CBC News

Poultry workers did not comply with public health recommendations requiring them to wear protective goggles during British Columbia's avian flu outbreak in 2004, a new study suggests.

The H7N3 form of bird flu infected 1.3 million birds that year in the province and led to economic losses that were estimated at more than $300 million.

Molecular scientist Ken Sojonky searches for the presence of viral RNA in swabs from fowl coming from farms in the Chilliwack area of British Columbia.
(Canadian Press)

Dr. Danuta Skowronski of the BC Centre for Disease Control and her colleagues surveyed 167 people in the spring of 2004 to look at both cases of illness and compliance with recommended protective measures.

The only two human infections in the province occurred after direct contact with the eyes, which highlights the importance of wearing goggles, the team said. They found that the H7N3 strain of the disease caused mild eye infections.

"Recommended protective measures should be provided and readily accessible to any potentially exposed person during future outbreaks of avian influenza," the researchers concluded in Tuesday's issue of the Canadian Medical Association Journal.

"These precautions should be simple and feasible and should enable safe and unobstructed work; evaluation of compliance, effectiveness and impact should be undertaken."

Oh no...bird flu hits in Vietnam again...

2006-12-30T15:53:00.000-08:00

Vietnam Reports First Suspected Cases of Human Bird Flu in a Year
By VOA News 30 December 2006

A trader transports chickens on the back of his motorbike on a road near Hanoi, Vietnam (file photo)

Authorities in Vietnam say four members of a family have been hospitalized with symptoms of bird flu, in the country's first suspected cases of the disease in more than a year.

Officials say the mother and her three children, aged between three and 13 years old, fell ill after eating a sick chicken earlier this month in Ca Mau province. Health officials say they are being tested for the deadly H5N1 strain of the virus.

Earlier this month, Vietnam reported its first bird flu outbreaks in poultry in a year in Ca Mau and two other provinces in the Mekong Delta. The outbreaks killed or forced the slaughter of thousands of poultry there.

Vietnam has the second highest number of human bird flu deaths after Indonesia. More than 150 people have died from the disease, mainly in Asia.

Most of the deaths happened as a result of contact with sick birds, but experts fear the virus could mutate into a form that easily transmits by human-to-human contact.

Some information for this report was provided by AP and Reuters.

New website for me and maybe you

2006-12-29T17:23:00.000-08:00

http://www.irinnews.org
EGYPT: Bird flu claims tenth fatal victim

[This report does not necessarily reflect the views of the United Nations]

© Victoria Hazou/IRIN

CAIRO, 28 Dec 2006 (IRIN) - Health ministry officials reported the tenth death in Egypt to be caused by the avian influenza virus H5N1, this time a 26-year-old male factory worker. He died on 27 December.

According to ministry media official Sayyid al-Abbasi, the latest victim was a relative of two females, one aged 30 and the other 15, who died over the course of the week in Gharbiyya province, 90 km north of Cairo.

“They all lived in the same house,” he said, where infected domestically kept birds were being reared. “All three were in frequent contact with the infected ducks, cleaning and slaughtering them.”

Tests for the virus have been run on the rest of the household. “No other members of the family are infected,” al-Abbasi said.

Virus H5N1 was first detected among humans in Egypt in March 2006, and a month earlier among birds. The majority of infections and all of the deaths have been among people who reared birds domestically as opposed to on farms.

In response to the risk of infection by rearing birds at home, the government banned domestic poultry rearing in urban centres. However, the country’s health authorities did not impose similar restrictions in rural areas where domestic breeding is more widespread and economically vital.

“A ban would lead many to conceal their birds, heightening the danger rather than quelling it,” Abdel Rahman Shahine, a health ministry official, said.

“Instead, the government plans to intensify its awareness campaign,” al-Abbasi told IRIN, to prevent new infections among humans from occurring.

Egypt’s densely inhabited Nile Valley saw the worst concentration of bird flu infection this year outside Asia. The area has a large rural population that has traditionally reared poultry for food and income, and lies on major routes for migratory birds.

sa/ar

US and international preparedness evaluated

2006-12-29T17:13:00.000-08:00

Feds detail progress on pandemic preparedness

Lisa Schnirring and Robert Roos Staff Writers

Dec 29, 2006 (CIDRAP News) – In a recent update on pandemic influenza preparedness planning, the US government reported meeting more than 90% of a long list of objectives it set for itself about 6 months ago.

The report charts progress on a wide range of preparedness measures, from shoring up laboratory capabilities to planning for distribution of critical medical supplies and preparing checklists for various sectors of the economy.

In May, federal officials released the National Strategy for Pandemic Influenza: Implementation Plan, a 228-page document describing how the government will cope with an influenza pandemic. The statement was a follow-up to the HHS Pandemic Influenza Plan, released by the Department of Health and Human Services (HHS) in November 2005.

The status report, released Dec 18, covers 104 tasks that were to be completed within 6 months of release of the implementation plan. The tasks fall into 6 categories: international efforts, transportation and borders, protecting human health, protecting animal health, law enforcement and public safety, and institutions.

Of the 104 tasks addressed, 96 have been completed, and 8 are in progress, the report says. The introduction notes that even though most of the 6-month goals have been met, work on many of the tasks is continuing.

Jeff Levi, PhD, executive director of Trust for America's Health (TFAH), a Washington, DC-based nonprofit public health advocacy group, commended federal officials for meeting most of the 6-month benchmarks in the pandemic plan.

"This first phase of the federal pandemic preparedness plan moved at full speed ahead," he said in a Dec 18 TFAH press release. "It has been an historic government-wide effort, and the release of the results demonstrates a serious commitment to transparency and accountability, allowing Americans to see how well their tax dollars are being spent to improve preparedness for a major health emergency."

The status report shows that overall progress is being made, even though media reports on pandemic flu have waned, Chris Logan, a senior policy analyst with the National Governors' Association, told CIDRAP News. The status report is useful for state officials because it raises questions they need to be thinking about. "It's not just the obvious stuff, it's the implications of decisions that people need to be aware of and thinking through," he said. "To the extent these documents help people think through the potential second- and third-order effects, they're helpful."

Michael T. Osterholm, PhD, MPH, director of the University of Minnesota Center for Infectious Disease Research and Policy (CIDRAP), publisher of the CIDRAP Web site, said he applauds the Bush administration for issuing a progress report on pandemic preparedness. "But we really have to ask ourselves the hard question 'What does it mean to be prepared?', and right now, I don't think we have a clue," he said.

It's difficult to determine if the country is better prepared now than it was 6 months ago, Osterholm told CIDRAP News. He said officials need to start the difficult task of prioritizing preparation measures. "We've got to do a better job of understanding the key factors that will get us through a pandemic," he said. "If there are 10 major factors and 100 little ones, you can get 90 done, but if you don't get the 10 major ones done, you're not prepared."

Osterholm said one problem with the status report is that it reflects a US-centered view of pandemic planning. "What happens to the world will happen to the United States because of the global just-in-time economy," he said.

A number of the activities discussed in the report are summarized below.

International efforts
The federal government has informed 2 million US citizens living abroad about the latest developments in avian and pandemic flu, mainly through the US government's main pandemic flu site, and has provided additional information through US consulates and warden networks.

Also, federal officials have developed a policy for contributing to international medication stockpiles and deploying antiviral medications. The government reviewed whether or not US stockpile contributions should require liability limits, but officials found that there's not an urgent need to propose such arrangements.

The US Agency for International Development (AID) and the US Department of Agriculture (USDA) developed a model compensation program for farmers affected by animal influenza outbreaks, which will be launched in early 2007 with partners at the World Bank, United Nations Food and Agriculture Organization (FAO), and the Indonesian government.

Work is continuing on an international strategy to contain pandemic influenza outbreaks, and the US has provided $400,000 to the World Health Organization to host workshops on proper transport of influenza samples to reference laboratories.

The US State Department, along with the Department of Commerce and the Centers for Disease Control and Prevention (CDC), drafted a pandemic preparedness checklist for US companies that have overseas operations. Three major business organizations are reviewing the checklist, and once completed, the document will be posted on the government's pandemic flu Web site.

Transportation and borders
HHS and the departments of Homeland security (DHS), Transportation, and Labor (DOL) developed a pandemic planning checklist for the travel industry and workforce protection guidelines for airline crew members and other people who may come in contact with people and cargo from pandemic-affected areas.

To ensure that all border and transportation stakeholders receive accurate and current information about quarantinable diseases, HHS, USDA, and other departments reviewed the current protocol and added several groups to the notification chain.

Policy recommendations for air, land, and maritime entries and exits, including response plans and screening, were developed by HHS with assistance from 5 other federal departments.

Federal security forces have been briefed by the Department of Justice and DHS about protecting shipments of critical supplies and facilities and are developing contingency plans to carry out the security responsibilities.

Protecting human health
HHS, with the Department of Defense (DOD), the Veterans Administration, and medical specialty societies, developed a guide to help community planners address mass-casualty care with scarce resources. The document was released in November and is posted on the Web site of the Agency for Healthcare Research and Quality.

To coordinate and communicate effective messages to the public about pandemic flu, HHS and several other federal agencies and local officials enlisted and trained a wide range of influential community spokespeople who will be available to speak on the pandemic crisis. Risk communication strategies are also planned for local public health, community, and tribal leaders. Several government agencies have also help develop risk communication strategies ("message maps") on avian flu, pandemic flu, antiviral medications, and vaccines.

One topic of interest to state officials is the possibility of broadening the Food and Drug Administration's Shelf Life Extension Program to state stockpiles of antiviral medications. The program allows the federal government to keep medications beyond the expiration date under certain conditions. However, federal officials determined that including state stockpiles in the program is not currently feasible.

Logan said that decision is a concern for states. The federal government is providing a 25% subsidy to help states build their own antiviral stockpiles, but the drugs have a listed shelf-life of 5 years and can be used only for pandemic flu, not for seasonal flu, he said. "If a pandemic doesn't happen before the end of the shelf-life, you have to throw the antivirals out. . . . And then states will have to go out and buy replacement antivirals for their stockpiles. That's obviously an issue of concern for the states."

To boost vaccine production in the event of an influenza pandemic, HHS explored current production capacities of US vaccine producers and in June issued a request for proposals to retrofit their facilities to produce pandemic vaccines in an emergency.

Smooth, efficient allocation of medical equipment such as ventilators and gloves is a key part of a pandemic response, and HHS and other government agencies have developed and tested a plan to distribute critical materials. The plan was tested in October, and will undergo further trials through March 2007.

To speed the genetic sequencing of viral isolates during a pandemic, HHS set a goal of releasing the findings to GenBank within 1 week of diagnosis confirmation at the Institute for Genomic Research. Complete viral genome sequences can now be obtained from a clinical sample in 3 days, and HHS, with the Association of Public Health Laboratories, can publish sequence data on a human H5N1 isolate within 1 week.

There were other accomplishments on the laboratory front. HHS improved access to standardized influenza reagents for use in tests and research; it can now distribute the reagents within 3 business days of a request. HHS, along with other government agencies and partners, has supplied all members of the US Laboratory Response Network with reagents and protocols to conduct tests using real-time reverse-transcriptase polymerase chain reaction (RT-PCR). These labs are prepared to use RT-PCR to identify and confirm pandemic flu strains within 24 hours.

HHS, using DOD threat-reduction modeling tools and software from other agencies, has developed a real-time epidemic analysis and modeling system for public health use and emergency preparedness.

The National Disaster Medical System has developed a strategy for deploying medical assets, such as materials and mobile medical units, held by DHS and HHS. Several federal agencies also developed a "Pandemic Influenza Playbook" that describes what public health and medical capabilities the federal government has available to support state responses to pandemic influenza.

Protecting animal health
Federal agencies, with the assistance of states, launched a wild-bird testing program for H5N1 avian flu in August along with an electronic reporting system, and is working on a response strategy if such an outbreak occurs.

In assessing the abilities and needs of federal animal research facilities, the USDA and DHS identified problems at a key animal influenza research facility. The departments completed a study of the facility's deficiencies, along with plans to address its needs.

Because of the risk of an avian flu outbreak in birds, several government agencies have prepared three messages based on three scenarios that can be used to deliver clear, coordinated information to the public. Federal departments, with the assistance of industry groups, have also developed food safety messages that can be customized and distributed if an avian influenza outbreak occurs.

Law enforcement and public safety
The Department of Justice, along with HHS, DHS, DOL, sponsored a forum in May for criminal justice officials on best practices to meet the challenges they may face in a pandemic outbreak. Information from the forum is available on the Web site of the Bureau of Justice Assistance. In addition, a consortium of criminal experts was convened in conjunction with the forum to guide ongoing criminal justice planning efforts.

To address emergency response issues, DHS and several other government agencies will host a forum in February for selected federal, state, local, and tribal officials. The group will review interim guidance and adopt a national pandemic flu planning model.

Checklists for law enforcement personnel and emergency responders on issues such as prepandemic vaccination have been developed by HHS and DOL. The documents, which were reviewed by police unions and other professional organizations, also include planning checklists for correctional facilities.

Institutions
Government officials have developed preparedness exercises with private-sector partners, and templates of the exercises are available for use by other interested groups. Business continuity guidance was developed and published on the government's pandemic flu Web site.

Interim guidance on environmental management and cleaning practices, including the handling of potentially contaminated waste materials, has been developed. The guidelines are intended for healthcare facilities, homes, schools, and businesses.

Unfinished tasks
Eight of the tasks were not completed by the 6-month deadline, and the report notes that work on each is continuing. They include measures to:

Draft a report analyzing the pros and cons of invoking the Defense Production Act to procure medical countermeasures during a pandemic
Improve the speed of mortality surveillance through the 122 Cities Mortality Reporting System
Establish a protocol for state governments on how to request federal military assistance under the Insurrection Act
Adopt and test a planning and preparation model for emergency response systems
Publish interim guidance on environmental management of pandemic flu viruses
Publish final pandemic planning guidelines for critical infrastructure owners and operators
Help critical infrastructure entities conduct collaborative exercises to test essential functions and identify critical planning, response, and mitigation needs.

A universal flu vaccine?

2006-12-28T14:50:00.000-08:00

The vaccine to cure every strain of flu

by FIONA MacRAE Last updated at 22:20pm on 28th December 2006

Just a couple of injections could give long-lasting immunity

British scientists are on the verge of producing a revolutionary flu vaccine that works against all major types of the disease.

Described as the 'holy grail' of flu vaccines, it would protect against all strains of influenza A - the virus behind both bird flu and the nastiest outbreaks of winter flu.

Just a couple of injections could give long-lasting immunity - unlike the current vaccine which has to be given every year.

The brainchild of scientists at Cambridge biotech firm Acambis, working with Belgian researchers, the vaccine will be tested on humans for the first time in the next few months.

A similar universal flu vaccine, being developed by Swiss vaccine firm Cytos Biotechnology, could also be tested on people in 2007 - and the vaccines on the market in around five years.

Importantly, the vaccines would also be quicker and easier to make than the traditional jabs, meaning vast quantities could be stockpiled against a global outbreak of bird flu.

Martin Bachmann, of Cytos, said: "You could really stockpile it. In the case of a pandemic, that would be a huge advantage.

"If you were to start making a traditional vaccine at the start of a pandemic, there is no way there would be enough."

The Government believes a bird flu pandemic is inevitable, killing 50,000 people in Britain alone.

However, it acknowledges that the bug could be much more lethal - infecting one in two people and claiming more than 700,000 lives.

Normal winter flu can also kill, claiming up to 12,000 lives a year in the UK.

Although a vaccine exists, constant changes in the virus's appearance have until now made it impossible to create just one flu vaccine. Instead a new vaccine is put together each year to protect against the particular strains circulating at that time.

In addition, the virus used in the jab is grown in hen's eggs - a time-consuming process that yields just one shot of vaccine per egg.

The new jabs would be grown in huge vats of bacterial 'soup', with just two pints of liquid providing 10,000 doses of vaccine.

Current flu vaccines focus on two proteins on the surface of the virus. However, these constantly mutate in a bid to fool the immune system, making it impossible for vaccine manufacturers to keep up with the creation of each new strain.

The universal vaccines focus on a different protein called M2, which has barely changed during the last 100 years.

The protein is found in all types of Influenza A, including the current bird flu and the virus that caused the 1918 Spanish flu pandemic which killed up to 50 million across the globe.

Normally, such vaccines would have to go through at least five years of human tests before going on the market. However, if a bird flu pandemic occurs before that, they could be made more quickly available.

Zurich-based Cytos, which is also developing anti-smoking and obesity vaccines, has showed that its version of the jab stops mice dying from a dose of flu strong enough to kill them four-times over.

The vaccinated animals were also spared the fever that normally goes along with flu.

Although it is too early to say what the effect would be in humans, an initial course of two or three shots could provide long-lasting immunity, topped up with booster shots given every five to ten years.

Dr Ashley Birkett, of Acambis, said: "It wouldn't be that one shot protects for life but you would need fewer doses over your lifetime."

In addition, the jabs could be produced in vast quantities and stockpiled ahead of a flu pandemic - or even given to people in advance.

In contrast, a traditionally-produced vaccine, matched to the specific strain of flu, would not be available until around six months after the start of the pandemic.

The new vaccines only protect against influenza A - the version of the bug responsible for pandemic flu and the most severe cases of winter flu.

However, it may also be possible to create a similar jab against influenza B, which causes a milder form of winter flu.

Professor John Oxford, Britain's leading flu expert, said the development of a universal vaccine was the "holy grail" of flu research.

He added: "If you get a M2 vaccine which protects against the whole caboodle in the same vaccine, the possibilities are huge."

But, others cautioned that there is no guarantee that the jabs would be as effective in humans as it has been in animals.

Virologist Professor Ian Jones, of the University of Reading, said: "It is an encouraging technique which may have a role to play but it is too soon to assume that it will translate into a universal vaccine in the human population."

Dr Jim Robertson, a vaccine expert from the government-funded National Institute for Biological Standards and Control, said the main advantage of a universal jab would be lasting immunity.

"If it works, it will be lovely," he said. "The best result would be that it would last for a long, long time."

Dr Ron Cutler, an infectious diseases expert from the University of East London, said: "Continual protection would be a tremendous advantage against flu."

He cautioned however, that there is no guarantee that the M2 protein will not mutate in the future - meaning the jab will have to be regularly reformulated.

Lancet article on flu treatment (H5N1)

2006-12-27T17:15:00.000-08:00

The Lancet is a free website, but you must register (very quick).http://www.thelancet.com

The Lancet Infectious Diseases 2007; 7:21-31

DOI:10.1016/S1473-3099(06)70684-3

Review

WHO Rapid Advice Guidelines for pharmacological management of sporadic human infection with avian influenza A (H5N1) virus

Summary

Recent spread of avian influenza A (H5N1) virus to poultry and wild birds has increased the threat of human infections with H5N1 virus worldwide. Despite international agreement to stockpile antivirals, evidence-based guidelines for their use do not exist. WHO assembled an international multidisciplinary panel to develop rapid advice for the pharmacological management of human H5N1 virus infection in the current pandemic alert period. A transparent methodological guideline process on the basis of the Grading Recommendations, Assessment, Development and Evaluation (GRADE) approach was used to develop evidence-based guidelines. Our development of specific recommendations for treatment and chemoprophylaxis of sporadic H5N1 infection resulted from the benefits, harms, burden, and cost of interventions in several patient and exposure groups. Overall, the quality of the underlying evidence for all recommendations was rated as very low because it was based on small case series of H5N1 patients, on extrapolation from preclinical studies, and high quality studies of seasonal influenza. A strong recommendation to treat H5N1 patients with oseltamivir was made in part because of the severity of the disease. Similarly, strong recommendations were made to use neuraminidase inhibitors as chemoprophylaxis in high-risk exposure populations. Emergence of other novel influenza A viral subtypes with pandemic potential, or changes in the pathogenicity of H5N1 virus strains, will require an update of these guidelines and WHO will be monitoring this closely.

What's a footbath got to do with it?

2006-12-27T08:31:00.000-08:00

NAIA intensifies bird-flu watch

By Jonathan M. Hicap, Reporter

The Manila International Airport Authority (MIAA) has intensified its watch against bird flu following reports of continued outbreaks in several countries.

In a memorandum issued on December 27, Alfonso Cusi, MIAA general manager, ordered all airport personnel to continue the use of thermal scanning for incoming passengers and flight crew and the use of footbath to prevent the entry of the virus from affected countries.

Cusi said the Ministry of Health in Indonesia confirmed the country’s 57th death from the bird-flu virus. A 35-year-old female died of the virus on November 28. Indonesia confirmed 57 deaths of the 74 cases of bird flu.

He also ordered the full staffing of medical personnel detailed at the MIAA-Bureau of Quarantine and the continuous coordination with offices to ensure that guidelines are followed.

The World Health Organization said there are 258 confirmed bird-flu cases in the world with 154 confirmed human deaths.

“We cannot allow any risk or threat that will imperil our nation’s present condition,” Cusi said in the memo.

Off to spend Christmas without computer!

2006-12-24T10:55:00.000-08:00

May your days be Merry and Bright
And may all your Christmases be White..
Joy, peace, prosperity and good health to all.

Egyptian family cluster?

2006-12-24T08:23:00.000-08:00

Bird Flu Infects Three Family Members In Egypt

Article Date: 24 Dec 2006 - 4:00 PST

A family cluster infection of bird flu has been identified in Garbiya, about 55 miles north of Cairo, Egypt, say officials from the World Health Organization (WHO). Two infected people had been slaughtering ducks prior to becoming infected, say WHO officials.

Official confirmation conflicts with the WHO version. A spokesman for the Egyptian Health Ministry said only two patients had been infected with H5N1, the virulent bird fly virus strain.

Authorities say birds in the immediate vicinity of the infections are being culled as a precautionary measure. They added that all humans in the area who have been handling poultry are being checked.

Egypt has had 18 cases of human H5N1 infection, including these three. The first case was reported in March 2006.

Backyard poultry is widespread in Egypt. WHO says the risk of bird flu spreading fast is greater in countries where backyard poultry is more common.

Written by: Christian Nordqvist
Editor: Medical News Today

Egyptian bird flu hits hard

2006-12-24T08:19:00.000-08:00

Eighth Egyptian dies of bird flu - WHO
24 Dec 2006 14:33:19 GMT

CAIRO, Dec 24 (Reuter) - An Egyptian woman died of bird flu on Sunday, only hours after tests confirmed she had been suffering from the highly pathogenic H5N1 virus, a World Health Organization official said.

Hassan el-Bushra, regional adviser for communicable diseases surveillance at the WHO, said the 30-year-old woman had been in hospital since mid-December, but doctors had not immediately suspected bird flu as she denied having had contact with poultry.

Her death brings the number of total human deaths from H5N1 in Egypt to eight.

South Korean farms hit

2006-12-22T06:48:00.001-08:00

A highly infectious form of bird flu was discovered in a duck 90 kilometres south of Seoul in the fourth farm in South Korea to be hit with avian influenza in a month, the Agriculture Ministry said Friday.

More tests were required to see whether the latest case at a duck farm in Asan represented an infection with the H5N1 strain of bird flu, which has proven dangerous to people, a worker in the ministry's department of animal health said.

About 770,000 birds have already been culled in Iksan, south of Asan, after H5N1 infections were discovered at two poultry operations there. Another 365,000 birds were killed nearby in Gimje, also because of an H5N1 outbreak.

About 23,000 poultry are also to be killed in a 3-kilometre radius from the affected Asan farm. The Agriculture Ministry said bird flu also broke out on the duck farm in February 2004.

According to the UN's World Health Organization, 258 people have been infected with H5N1 in 10 countries in Asia and Africa since late 2003. Of them, 154 have died.

No human cases of the disease have been reported in South Korea, but from 2003 to 2004, a bird-flu outbreak among poultry there led to the killing of 5.3 million birds in an effort to stop the spread of the disease, which is virulent among poultry.

It's transmission to people is more difficult, and most human patients have contracted the disease through close contact with infected birds. Health experts fear, however, that the virus could mutate into a form that could spread from human to human.

© 2006 DPA

Multiple outbreaks in Vietnam

2006-12-22T06:44:00.000-08:00

Vietnam battles three bird flu outbreaks

Hanoi (dpa) - Authorities in Vietnam have identified three new outbreaks of bird flu in the Mekong Delta, raising fears of a larger-scale return of the deadly H5N1 virus after a year of relative calm, an official said Friday.

No human cases of bird flu have been reported, but chickens and ducks have died of bird flu in three new areas in the Mekong Delta provinces of Ca Mau and Bac Lieu, which this week reported the first confirmed cases in more than a year.

"The situation is alarming," said Hoang Van Nam, director of the Epidemic Unit under Vietnam's Ministry of Agriculture and Rural Development.

Thousands of chickens and ducks in the affected areas have been slaughtered as authorities try to limit the spread of the virus, which has killed hundreds of millions of chickens and at least 42 people in Vietnam since 2004.

"Our assessment is that bird flu is likely to spread far outside the outbreak confirmed localities," Nam said. "Once the virus spread to the environment, other provinces will be affected."

Nam said the onset of winter represents heightened vulnerability for infection in both poultry and humans - especially as the coming lunar new year celebrations usually see families slaughtering chickens for feasts.

The H5N1 strain of bird flu is not easily contagious among humans, but people can be infected through close contact with infected poultry.

The virus has raised fears among scientists because up to 60 per cent of people known to have been infected have died.

International health organizations warn that H5N1 also could someday mutate into a new human influenza pandemic strain.

A new flu pandemic - which hasn't been seen since the 1960s - could kill as many as 62 million people, according to a study published this week in the medical journal The Lancet.

Most efforts in preventing a pandemic have focused on controlling the virus in domestic poultry, which would deny H5N1 the contact with humans that would make it most likely to mutate.

Vietnam has been one of the most successful countries in controlling the virus through an aggressive programme of poultry vaccinations, which took the country from having outbreaks in all 63 provinces in 2005 to no reported cases in poultry or humans for more than a year.

This week's reported outbreaks apparently were at small farms that had avoided the government-mandated vaccinations, officials said.

Interactive map of avian flu

2006-12-17T16:49:00.000-08:00

This is a great graphical representation of the growth of bird flu brought to you by MSNBC. Check it out!

10 high tech isolation beds in Nebraska

2006-12-17T15:24:00.000-08:00

Quarantine unit prepares for wave of infection
Nebraska facility ready to isolate first carriers of bird flu, other diseases

Updated: 11:18 a.m. PT Dec 17, 2006 MSNBC

OMAHA, Neb. - Consider it a biomedical Fort Knox, a fortress for germs instead of gold.

On a quiet floor of the Nebraska Medical Center in Omaha, the most advanced containment system available forms a bulwark against the release of deadly infectious diseases such as the feared bird flu.

The Nebraska Biocontainment Unit has only 10 beds yet is the largest of three quarantine facilities in the country. They would be of no use once a flu pandemic was raging. But if someone shows up with an unusual contagious killer, they might help avert an outbreak.

Nothing is left to chance.

“If we ever had a situation, they certainly would be equipped to handle it,” said Von Roebuck, a spokesman for the Centers for Disease Control and Prevention.

A special set of double doors is installed, with one door closed and locked at all times to prevent bad air from escaping. Hospital staff can use an access system to safely drop off medical supplies or meals by leaving items between the doors for employees inside the unit to retrieve.

A separate staff entrance allows doctors and nurses to walk directly to a locker room where they can change into sterile scrubs. Hooded suits with self-contained air systems are available for cases of severe risk.

A decontamination shower is a required stop before anyone can re-enter the locker room.

The unit’s separate air system uses High Efficiency Particulate Air filters and ultraviolet rays to destroy germs. The filtered air is released outside rather than into the hospital’s ventilation system.

Then there are the tornado-proof windows and fire walls.

The Nebraska facility and two-bed germ-containment units at the U.S. Army Medical Research Institute of Infectious Diseases at Fort Detrick, Md., and Emory University Hospital in Atlanta are meant to nip a dangerous outbreak in the bud.

It is not known how many beds are enough to isolate the very first carriers of disease. Early detection will be critical if bird flu or any such deadly disease comes to the United States.

But these defenses, and plans to turn more space into quasi-containment units should the need arise, would be quickly overrun in a widespread outbreak.

In the event of a bird flu pandemic, federal officials estimate 30 percent of the population could fall ill — perhaps 90 million people.

Depending on the severity of the strain, 865,000 to 9.9 million could require hospitalization and 209,000 to 1.9 million could die, according to these estimates.

The Nebraska unit has not been used since it opened in 2005. The Fort Detrick one has been activated 20 times in 34 years for quarantine of people under observation for exposure to exotic hemorrhagic viruses such as Lassa fever and Ebola. The Atlanta unit, operated by the federal Centers for Disease Control and Prevention, has been used twice since it opened in 2002.

Update from all over

2006-12-17T08:52:00.000-08:00

Avian Influenza from USGS

H5N1 in Wild Birds
Unpublished data presented at a meeting in Singapore this week showed that in experimental infections of sparrows, pigeons and starlings, the H5N1 virus can be found in the respiratory and digestive tract. "Saliva swabs from the birds' beaks are much better for detecting bird flu virus particles, while fecal samples are the ‘least sensitive,’" Robert Webster of St. Jude Children's Hospital said, who presented the new data in Singapore. According to news reports, although there was viral shedding in inoculated birds, mortality was seen only in sparrows, but not in the starlings and pigeons. There was no transmission to other birds in all three species. Webster suggests that keeping small birds such as those tested in these experiments away from poultry is necessary so they do not carry the virus from chicken house to chicken house.

A mortality event at the Nalabana Bird Sanctuary at the Chilika Lake, on the eastern coast of India, has killed over 80 birds with another 277 sick. Birds involved are mainly pintails, but also included shovelers, gadwalls, bar-headed geese and sea eagles. The saline lake is habitat for as many as 300,000 migratory birds from as far away as Iran, Iraq, Afghanistan, Tibet, and Siberia. The cause of death has not been determined and H5N1 has not been ruled out.

The government of Myanmar announced this week that migratory birds stopping at the Maha Nanda Lake, near Shwebo are being observed as of last week to monitor for the possibility of them carrying bird flu into the country and the rearing of livestock in the area has been banned as a precaution.

In China, the Zhalong State Nature Reserve for the red-crowned cranes (Grus japonensis) has been placed on high alert according to Wang Wenfeng, the deputy head of administration at the reserve, because the reserve lies along a bird migratory route. The Zhalong reserve is China's largest artificial breeding preserve for the highly endangered red-crowned cranes.

H5N1 in Domestic Animals
A third outbreak of HPAI within the same month has been reported in Gimje, North Cholla province, South Korea. The farmer reported on 12/10/06 to the authorities that over 1,000 quail died over a 4-day period. The farm raises over 290,000 quail. Some experts and local farms suspect the disease might have spread along the major local highway, Route 23, but an unnamed provincial official is quoted in a Korean news report as saying “Quail are hardy birds, and it seems the infected birds got the virus from migratory birds at the same time as the poultry in Iksan and fell ill after the full incubation period of 21 days." Before the movement of poultry from the farm was halted, over 100,000 quail eggs had been sent to market. Quail eggs are not washed before sale and authorities fear the fecal contamination might contain virus. Also, 15,000 young quail were sent to a farm in Koksong, South Cholla on 12/9/06. No evidence of disease has been reported at Koksong; 360,000 poultry within 500 m of the Gimje farm will be culled. So far, over a million birds have been or will be culled in the three outbreaks this year in South Korea.

The Veterinary Department in Vietnam announced that the country has not had any H5N1 outbreaks for over a year. The last outbreak, according to the news report, was 12/15/2005.

H5N1 in Humans
There were no new human cases this week.

Mold the culprit in duck deaths

2006-12-17T07:33:00.000-08:00

USDA: Moldy Grain, Not Bird Flu, Caused Idaho Duck Deaths

WASHINGTON (Dow Jones)--Moldy grain, not bird flu, caused a large mallard duck die-off in Idaho, a U.S. Department of Agriculture spokeswoman said Friday. Tests conducted at the National Wildlife Health Center, which is operated by the U.S. Geological Survey, found no avian influenza, said USDA spokeswoman Angela Harless.

Instead, it’s been determined that the birds were sickened by eating mold on corn, she said. Mold produces a toxin that can sicken wildlife when ingested. As many as 2,500 mallard ducks died along a southeastern Idaho creek bed, state officials have said.

The ducks mysteriously began dying last week around Land Springs Creek, about 180 miles southeast of Boise. Mark Drew, a wildlife veterinarian with the state Department of Agriculture told The Associated Press earlier this week the ducks likely were exposed to a single contamination source and gathered at the creek, their mutual roosting point, to die.

State officials had said since the investigation into the die-off began that bird flu was unlikely to be the cause.

How Nebraska prepares

2006-12-17T07:25:00.000-08:00

Avian Flu Preparations
Human outbreak called likely

Nebraska health officials continue to gear up for what many experts say is inevitable -- a human outbreak of avian flu.

Pandemic Preparedness

Dr. Taronna Maines, a microbiologist with the CDC, conducts an experiment with an H5N1 avian influenza virus.

Nebraska, which has received national recognition for its pandemic planning, has been aggressively preparing for bird flu for the past two years. The government's most recent efforts include implementing a statewide surveillance system, talking with communities about the effects of an outbreak and testing wild birds for signs of the disease.

"We have been working very diligently on this for a long time," said Dr. Joann Schaefer, the state's chief medical officer. "There's always room for improvement. There's always room for more planning.

"I would be hesitant to say we would ever be fully prepared," she said.

Schaefer highlighted Nebraska's new surveillance system as a unique tool in pandemic preparedness. It could be used as a prototype for other states.

The computer model monitors factors such as absenteeism at schools and businesses, weather patterns and animal behavior, alerting health officials to anomalies.

For example, dead birds found in the same area where a large number of students are ill may indicate an avian flu outbreak.

Most human cases of the virus have been linked to close contact with sick birds or their droppings carrying the H5N1 strain. Experts fear the virus could mutate into a form that spreads easily from person to person, causing a worldwide pandemic.

The human strain of bird flu will be "a brand new virus that we've never seen before," said Sharon Medcalf, the associate director of the state's Center for Biopreparedness Education. "It happens to be a very lethal one."

The U.S. Department of Health estimates 209,000 to 1.9 million Americans could die in a pandemic situation. In Nebraska, that figure is projected to be 1,181 to 10,832.

Until the human strain emerges, researchers cannot create a vaccine specifically for it. Two anti-viral medications, Tamiflu and Relenza, are believed to be effective in treating bird flu.

The federal government has allotted Nebraska 258,923 doses of vaccine, according to Leah Bucco-White, a spokeswoman with the state Health Department.

The state Legislature, she said, will be asked to authorize the purchase of 45,600 more.

Lt. Gov. Rick Sheehy, who handles the state's homeland security efforts, said Nebraska has a universal plan in place to respond to emergencies as varied as terrorist attacks and pandemics.

"We have a great plan in place," he said, adding that the government needs to continue to educate emergency responders and the public about how to respond to a pandemic.

When that pandemic could emerge is anyone's guess.

Michael T. Osterholm, the director of the Center for Infectious Disease Research and Policy at the University of Minnesota, said a human outbreak could surface tomorrow or four to five years down the road.

It's "not a matter of if, just when and where," he said.

The H5N1 virus, he said, is developing the same way the Spanish flu did in 1918. That virus moved from birds to other animal species and then to humans.

Fifty million to 100 million people are believed to have died worldwide from the Spanish flu. An estimated 1,500 died in Nebraska.

Medcalf said the United States should be on alert for avian flu this winter as birds travel south from Alaska. Those birds, she said, have been mingling with birds from southeast Asia and could carry bird flu.

The Nebraska Game and Parks Commission is already on the lookout for infected birds.

Since June, more than 2,000 samples have been taken from Canada geese, mallard ducks and other migratory birds in Nebraska, according to the commission.

All of the samples have tested negative for H5N1, said Mark Vritska, manager of the commission's waterfowl program.

Nonetheless, Nebraskans are being told to prepare.

Bucco-White said the Health and Human Services System is stressing "personal preparedness."

Be prepared!

2006-12-17T07:18:00.000-08:00

Flu preparation is critical

By The Sentinel, December 17, 2006

The state and federal governments are planning for it. The world, through the United Nation's World Health Organization is, too.

Now local emergency response agencies are asking: What are you doing to prepare for a possible flu pandemic?

If we learned anything from disasters such as Hurricane Katrina, these local leaders point out, it's that the best defense in times of trouble is the planning and preparation you do at home - well ahead of time.

Few alive today remember the great flu pandemic of 1918, but the lessons of that history are harsh. The so-called Spanish influenza claimed 50 million lives worldwide, half a million in the U.S.

In Pennsylvania, according to information provided by the U.S. Department of Health & Human Services on its Web site, www.pandemicflu.gov, the flu struck quickly and without warning.

On Sept. 27, 1918, a few cases were reported. But by Oct. 4, disease was epidemic in Pittsburgh and Philadelphia. Nearly 15,000 cases were counted in the first 18 days of October.

In the hardest-hit city, Philadelphia, essential services collapsed, as police officers, firefighters, garbage collectors and city administrators succumbed.

In many ways, we may be even more vulnerable to a pandemic today. Our food distribution system is complex, with food sources hundreds and thousands of miles away. The majority of us depend on public utilities to supply our homes with heat, light and water. What would we do if there were no one to drive or unload the trucks, stock the shelves or operate the plants?

If we aren't prepared, our lives - apart from the flu - would be at risk.

In Cumberland County, a Pandemic Action Community Task Force began meeting in November. Last week, it started getting the word out that, while people shouldn't panic, they should do a better job of anticipating what could happen.

And it's not just the flu to be feared, notes the county's chief of public safety, Eric Hoerner: “If we had a winter storm coming through that closes the roadways or causes a long-term power outage, you would need the same supplies as for avian flu planning.”

Preparation is simple - stockpile two to four weeks' worth of nonperishable food, water, prescription drugs, medical supplies and sanitizers.

And watch for the 12-page guide the task force is issuing in January to educate the public. “Pandemic Flu” covers symptoms, the nature of the disease, what a pandemic would be like, preparedness, prevention, treatment and caregiving tips.

The task force plans to distribute 20,000 copies at post offices and other places were people are likely to come across it.

Hopefully, the best-laid and best-executed plans will never be needed. But in case a widespread disaster such as a pandemic were to strike our area, it's far better to be ready.

Flu shot research has implications for bird flu

2006-12-17T07:14:00.000-08:00

SCIENCE NEWS
December 13, 2006
Flu shot doesn't need perfect virus match, study says

By Gene Emery

BOSTON (Reuters) - The annual influenza vaccine can protect against illness even if it isn't perfectly attuned to the flu strain going around, researchers said in a finding that may have implications for protecting people against bird flu.

Flu viruses mutate over time, a process called "drift." So viruses that sweep across the country may not always be those selected each February as the basis for the annual vaccine.

The study, to be published in Thursday's New England Journal of Medicine, found that the flu vaccine works even when drift has occurred.

Suzanne Ohmit of the University of Michigan School of Public Health and her colleagues found that in the fall of 2004, Sanofi-Pasteur's FluZone vaccine was 77 percent effective and MedImmune Inc.'s Flumist worked in 57 percent of the cases even though the flu strain making the rounds that year was not selected for the vaccine.

"We were surprised to learn that it worked as well as it did in a year when we might have thought it would have been less effective," said Arnold Monto of the University of Michigan School of Public Health, another member of the team. "It is ideal to have a vaccine match what is circulating. But even when it doesn't match exactly, you can get protection."

Monto told Reuters that the finding carries lessons for treating the predicted bird flu pandemic. Researchers are working on a vaccine, but there is no guarantee that the virus will match the strain that causes an outbreak.

Instead of stockpiling the vaccine, it might be wise to start inoculating people now, he said.

'PRIME THE PUMP'

Bird flu is expected to be so novel nobody will have any immunity to it, said Monto. As a result, people are going to need two doses of the vaccine, just as children who have never been exposed to regular influenza need two doses of the flu vaccine to be protected.

"Because we're all naive to this and we're going to be all like little children," he said, "it may be wise for us to get the first shot of whatever's available, which may give us some protection and will, in that case, prime the pump" and make inoculation more effective when a properly tuned vaccine is distributed.

A second team of investigators, also reporting in the Journal, said that when school-age children are vaccinated against the flu, it blocks the spread of illness to others.

James King of the University of Maryland and his colleagues gave the inhaled Flumist vaccine to nearly half the children in schools in Maryland, Texas, Minnesota and Washington state a year ago. MedImmune sponsored the test.

While 52 percent of the children developed a fever or flu-like illness in the schools where the vaccines weren't given, the rate was 40 percent in the schools where many of the youngsters were vaccinated. A similar decline in illness was seen in the adults in those families.

"Despite vaccinating less than half the kids, we showed an impact on all the families in that school, not just the targeted kid," King told Reuters.

He said universal vaccination of healthy youngsters in elementary school should be strongly considered.

"You're protecting the kids but more importantly you're protecting the families and communities," he said.

King added that school-based vaccination programs would also create a system making it easier to vaccinate the rest of the population if a bird flu pandemic loomed.

Hear from pandemic survivors

2006-12-16T17:12:00.000-08:00

Survivors Recall Horror of Flu Pandemic
Email this Story

Dec 16, 12:33 PM (ET)

By BRETT ZONGKER

(AP)
CHEVY CHASE, Md. (AP) - At the height of the flu pandemic in 1918, William H. Sardo Jr. remembers the pine caskets stacked in the living room of his family's house, a funeral home in Washington, D.C.

The city had slowed to a near halt. Schools were closed. Church services were banned. The federal government limited its hours of operation. People were dying - some who took ill in the morning were dead by night.

"That's how quickly it happened," said Sardo, 94, who lives in an assisted living facility just outside the nation's capital. "They disappeared from the face of the earth."

Sardo is among the last survivors of the 1918 flu pandemic. Their stories offer a glimpse at the forgotten history of one of the world's worst plagues, when the virus killed at least 50 million people and perhaps as many as 100 million.

More than 600,000 people in the United States died of what was then called "Spanish Influenza." The flu seemed to be particularly lethal for otherwise healthy young adults, many of whom suffocated from the buildup of liquids in their lungs.

In the United States, the first reported cases surfaced at an Army camp in Kansas as World War I began winding down. The virus quickly spread among soldiers at U.S. camps and in the trenches of Europe. It paralyzed many communities as it circled the world.

In the District of Columbia, the first recorded influenza death came on Sept. 21, 1918. The victim, a 24-year-old railroad worker, had been exposed in New York four days earlier. The flu swept through the nation's capital, which had attracted thousands of soldiers and war workers. By the time the pandemic had subsided, at least 30,000 people had become ill and 3,000 had died in the city.

Among the infected was Sardo, who was 6 years old at the time.

He remembers little of his illness but recalls that his mother was terrified.

"They kept me well separated from everybody," said Sardo, who lived with his parents, two brothers and three other family members. His family quarantined him in the bedroom he had shared with his brother. Everyone in the family wore masks.

The city began shutting down. The federal government staggered its hours to limit crowding on the streets and on streetcars. Commissioners overseeing the district closed schools in early October, along with playgrounds, theaters, vaudeville houses and "all places of amusement." Dances and other social gatherings were banned.

The commissioners asked clergy to cancel church services because the pandemic was threatening the "machinery of the federal government," The Washington Star newspaper reported at the time. Pastors protested.

"There was a feeling that they couldn't turn to God, other than in prayer," Sardo said. "They liked the feeling of going to church, and they were forbidden."

The flu's spread and the ensuing restrictions "made everybody afraid to go see anybody," he said.

"It changed a lot of society," Sardo said. "We became more individualistic."

In a list of 12 rules to prevent the disease's spread, the Army's surgeon general wrote that people should "avoid needless crowding," open windows and "breathe deeply" when the air is "pure" and "wash your hands before eating."

One slogan was, "Cover up each cough and sneeze. If you don't, you'll spread the disease."

Those who were healthy wore masks when venturing outside. People who were known to be infected were threatened with a $50 fine if they were seen in public. Sardo remembers people throwing buckets of water with disinfectant on their sidewalks to wash away germs from people spitting on the street.

At the time, rumors swirled that the Germans had spread the disease - which Sardo did not believe.

A second flu survivor, 99-year-old Ruth Marshall, says she, her two sisters and a brother came down with what they thought was a cold. Then the fever struck and the illness became severe, she said.

Marshall, who lived just steps from the Capitol at the time, said the influenza deaths reported in the newspapers came as a surprise.

"We never thought we were going to die. We did pretty good - a lot of prayers," she said.

Others were not so fortunate. As the death toll started to mount, there was a shortage of coffins. Funeral homes could not keep up. Sardo's father, who owned William H. Sardo & Co., and other funeral-home directors turned to soldiers for help embalming and digging thousands of graves.

Talk of the threat of another pandemic brings back memories for Sardo, who says he has gotten a flu shot every year they are available.

"It scares the hell out of me. It does," Sardo said.

---

Pandemic preparedness by US Congress

2006-12-16T15:14:00.000-08:00

Congress passes public health preparedness bill

Lisa Schnirring and Robert Roos * Staff Writers

Dec 15, 2006 (CIDRAP News) – Just before adjourning on Dec 9, the US Congress passed a bill to establish a new biodefense research and development agency and tune up the nation's public health emergency preparedness programs in a number of other ways.

The legislation sets up an agency called the Biodefense Advanced Research and Development Authority (BARDA) within the Department of Health and Human Services (HHS). The agency represents an attempt to revive the languishing Project BioShield, established in 2004 to develop countermeasures against biological weapons and other threats.

The legislation, called the Pandemic and All-Hazards Preparedness Act (S 3678), was passed by the Senate Dec 5 and cleared the House in the early morning hours of Dec 9. It now awaits President George W. Bush's signature.

"We're anticipating that he will sign it," Marc Wolfson, a spokesman for the HHS Office of Public Health Emergency Preparedness, told CIDRAP News today.

"I think people were surprised it made it through in the last hours there," Wolfson said. "There was a lot of negotiation that went into seeing it happen."

The final version combines a wide-ranging bill introduced in the Senate in July with a House measure calling for the BARDA. The House unanimously passed the BARDA bill, offered by Reps Anna G. Eshoo, D-Calif., and Mike Rogers, R-Mich., in September. The Senate added the house measure to its bill (S 3678) before passing it Dec 5; the House passed the combined bill just before adjournment.

Sen. Richard Burr, R-S.C., author of the original Senate bill, praised his colleagues of both political parties who worked for 2 years on the legislation. "This bill will help improve our preparedness and response to emergencies and disasters be they a terrorist attack or caused by Mother Nature," Burr said in a Dec 9 press release. "It will also help improve our ability to create new drugs and vaccines to fight against emergencies like a flu pandemic."

The bill reauthorizes the Public Health Security and Bioterrorism Preparedness and Response Act of 2002, passed after the terrorist attacks of 2001. Besides setting up the BARDA, the legislation does the following, among other things:

* Clarifies that HHS, not the Department of Homeland Security, is the lead federal agency for health and medical response to public health emergencies
* Requires HHS to set general preparedness standards and pandemic influenza preparedness standards for states and to penalize states financially for failure to meet them
* Requires states to match federal preparedness grants at the 5% level initially and at 10% in later years
* Calls for establishing within 2 years a nationwide electronic information-sharing system to enhance detection of and response to disease outbreaks and other public health emergencies
* Requires HHS to study the possibility of providing local communities with additional medical surge capacity in an emergency
* Makes political subdivisions of states and groups of states eligible for federal assistance for public health preparedness
* Codifies and expands the Medical Reserve Corps, a community-based network of volunteers who provide assistance in public health emergencies

The BARDA aims to boost Project BioShield, which was set up to nurture the development of vaccines and other medical countermeasures against biological, chemical, radiological, and nuclear agents. Major pharmaceutical companies have shown little interest in pursuing BioShield projects.

An online report this week by Government Executive magazine said past efforts to create a BARDA were hamstrung by controversies about whether it would be subject to the Freedom of Information Act and other disclosure laws. Most provisions to circumvent those laws were stripped from the bill, except for one that allows HHS to withhold information that might expose public health weaknesses, the report said.

Eshoo, coauthor of the House version of the BARDA bill, said in a Dec 9 statement that the lack of commercial demand for drugs to counter bioterrorism-related diseases creates a funding gap known as the "valley of death." She said the BARDA will bridge the gap by making interim payments at key development milestones, which will give companies incentives to pursue products that show promise in early research.

HHS Secretary Mike Leavitt, in a Dec 5 statement after the Senate approved S 3678, said the legislation complements work that is already being done to improve the BioShield program. He said HHS is taking steps to streamline countermeasure development by making the process more transparent and predictable. The new legislation will allow HHS to make milestone-based advance payments to companies, rather than withholding payment until the product is delivered, Leavitt said.

The text of the bill says that the HHS secretary can pay up to 10% of a contract amount in advance if it appears necessary to ensure the project's success. Also, a contract can provide for additional advance payments of up to 5% each for meeting milestones specified in the contract, up to a total of 50%.

Lance Ignon, vice president of corporate affairs at VaxGen Inc., a Brisbane, Calif., company that has been struggling to fulfill an $877.5 million government contract to supply anthrax vaccine, told CIDRAP News that the legislation is a step in the right direction. "But what's needed is a fundamental cultural shift to a more open and transparent dialogue between government and industry," he said. "Unless that happens, this won't succeed."

VaxGen's anthrax vaccine has been delayed because of potency problems, and in May, the Government Accountability Office said the government's contract with VaxGen was too rigid and might discourage other biotechnology companies from pursuing Project BioShield contracts. Developing new vaccines is expensive, difficult, and often hampered by testing and production delays.

"Getting across the valley of death is not necessarily about money, but involves a true partnership between government and industry," Ignon said.

The new legislation authorizes spending of $1.07 billion for BARDA for fiscal years 2006 through 2008.

In an August report, the Congressional Budget Office estimated that the original Senate bill—which did not include the BARDA provision—would cost $297 million in fiscal year 2007 and about $6 billion for the period 2007 through 2011.

Individuals need to plan: states can only do so much.

2006-12-16T15:04:00.000-08:00

Planning for flu pandemic involves even Meals on Wheels

By Anne Saunders, Associated Press Writer | December 14, 2006

CONCORD, N.H. --Meals on Wheels delivers 850 meals a day in Rockingham County, relying on 35-40 drivers and hundreds of volunteers who package the food for delivery.

What happens if these folks get sick in a flu pandemic? Will elders go hungry?

The New Horizons shelter for men and Angie's Shelter for women in Manchester typically serve 95-120 people a night with a staff of 17, three of whom work overnight. If their staff is ill, where will the homeless go?

This is when statewide avian flu planning gets down to the nuts and bolts.

Like all states, New Hampshire has been involved in making plans should a new flu strain or other contagious disease strike large numbers of people.

The state's efforts led to a 99-page document on pandemic preparedness that talks about how state health officials, hospitals and the state Emergency Operations Center will work together.

Another fat document looks at the numbers of hospital beds and how to provide extra beds in an emergency. That report found the state has room to accommodate 2,149 patients in regular beds and 374 in intensive care units. The goal is to find room for up to 30 percent more.

"I believe strongly that New Hampshire is leading the way on pandemic planning. I'm not going to say that I'm satisfied with our efforts. We do have gaps that we need to fill," said Health Commissioner John Stephen.

The state already has tested its ability to deliver flu vaccine to large numbers of people when it ran a large-scale drill in three parts of the state last November. And a drill this fall used 50 volunteers at the field house at Dartmouth College to test the Hanover community's ability to turn that space into a makeshift hospital.

A strike force of medical providers from all over the state came together for the event and two new software systems were tested, including a new Internet-based program creating an electronic medical record for patients who might be forced to move around in a disaster.

"You can only plan so much on paper," said Dr. Robert Gougelet, who directs the Northern New England Metropolitan Medical Response System, a bioterrorism and pandemic planning agency involving Maine, New Hampshire and Vermont.

New Hampshire has divided the task of pandemic planning into 19 regions, each with at least one hospital. Hospital officials, public health leaders, social service providers, emergency medical providers, law enforcement and homeland security representatives are meeting regularly to talk about the specific needs of their communities.

They're identifying the buildings that could take patients if the hospitals run out of room and arranging ways to get additional beds, supplies and staff. They're looking at sites to securely store vaccines and ways to ensure everyone involved can communicate. They're identifying people like the homebound and homeless in their communities who may need special attention in a disaster.

Gougelet said the regions all are at different points in the process but after studying what went wrong following Hurricane Katrina on the Gulf Coast, he's convinced that localizing the planning will be key to a successful response in New Hampshire whatever the threat.

"You're not waiting for the state. You're not waiting for the feds. They can still go into action without anyone's permission," he said.

Several steps remain in the pandemic planning, including getting the state Legislature to appropriate $6 million for special vaccines being made available by the federal government, getting each region to complete and run a drill on its plan and making sure officials have the legal authority to ration medicine, commandeer buildings or take other steps that may be necessary in a health emergency. Gougelet said it's also unclear whether existing plans make adequate provisions for an extended emergency.

And what will Meals on Wheels do if its volunteers are laid low by the flu? The agency keeps a supply of frozen meals to deliver extras if bad weather or a shortage of delivery people makes daily delivery impossible. It also has a collection of meals that don't require refrigeration in case of a prolonged power outage.

"We see ourselves as having to keep going no matter what. So many people depend on us," said Executive Director Debra Perou-Hermans.

And at Angie's Shelter and New Horizons, officials said shelters have a broad base of volunteers to provide extra hands in an emergency, especially since New Horizons also houses the local health clinic.

"A lot of what is done is done by volunteers," said Tim Soucy who's vice president of the board and a Manchester public health administrator.

"It could be the saving grace. I'm sure people would still say: what needs to be done? I think we're very fortunate," he said.
© Copyright 2006 Associated Press. All rights reserved. This material may not be published, broadcast, rewritten, or redistributed.

The states all have plans: but just how effective are they?

2006-12-15T10:51:00.000-08:00

States' flu plans vary widely

By Lauran Neergaard
Associated Press

Trailers packed with cots and medical supplies are parked in secret locations around Colorado, ready for doctors to open makeshift hospitals in school gyms if a flu pandemic strikes.

Parts of southeastern Washington are considering drive-through flu shots during a pandemic -- although a practice run this fall showed they'd better hire traffic cops. If Alabama closes schools amid a super-flu, students may take classes via public television. In Dallas, city librarians may replace sick 911 operators.

States and communities are getting creative as they struggle to answer the Bush administration's call to prepare for the next influenza pandemic, whether the culprit is the much-feared Asian bird flu or some other super-strain.

The Associated Press took a closer look at those preparations and found wide differences in how far along states are -- and little consensus on the best policies, even among neighboring states, on such basic issues as who decides whether to close schools.

Almost half the states haven't spent any of their own money yet to gird against a super-flu, relying instead on grants from the federal government.

Ethical queries abound about how to ration scarce drugs and vaccine. As Oklahoma epidemiologist Dr. Brett Cauthen puts it, that's "the toughest question out there." Some states are debating whether to purchase the recommended anti-flu medications to store for their citizens, or to gamble that they'll receive enough from a federal stockpile.

And while some states proudly list other pandemic supplies they've stockpiled in guarded warehouses -- 4.5 million protective face masks, touts New York -- others, like West Virginia, still are putting final drafts of their plans to paper.

"How are states doing, and how do we know how states are doing?" asked Dr. Pascale Wortley of the Centers for Disease Control and Prevention. "There's a lot of important things that are very hard to measure. It's a real challenge."

Indeed, when the government's first official assessment of state readiness begins in a few weeks, officials expect few states will have tackled some of the toughest issues: How will you keep grocery stores stocked? Will you reserve enough anti-flu drugs for utility workers so the water and electricity stay on? If you close schools, will local businesses let parents stay home with their children, or fire them?

When the feds fly in your state's share of vaccine and medicine, can you store it properly and get it to patients without being mobbed?

"Nothing, we think, is better than having 5,000 communities right now wrestle with this," said Dr. William Raub, emergency planning chief at the Department of Health and Human Services. "What will seem to work happily in one community is probably not going to work in some others."

Super-strains of the easy-to-mutate influenza virus cause worldwide outbreaks every few decades or so, three in the last century. Worst was the 1918 pandemic that killed about 50 million people worldwide, 500,000 in the U.S. alone. If a 1918-style pandemic struck today, up to a third of the population could fall ill and 1.9 million Americans could die.

With another pandemic overdue, the CDC began telling states to prepare years ago, plans that have taken on greater urgency with the simmering H5N1 bird flu. In 2004, just 29 states had pandemic plans of some sort. Today, all have at least a draft on paper.

Next spring, federal health officials will have their first report card on the quality of those preparations, based on a questionnaire that Raub hopes to ship to the states by month's end -- questions that will go beyond health care to ask how communities would keep the economy and society in general running.

Raub said he's not playing "gotcha," but that the responses are key to helping less prepared states catch up, and identifying best practices that neighbors can copy.

"I feel pretty confident we will have covered far and away all the important things," he said.

It's an assessment that public health advocates, worried at varying state investments, call long due.

"Where you live shouldn't determine your level of preparedness," said Jeff Levi, executive director of the Trust for America's Health. "This is not a question of letting 51 flowers bloom. The federal government, as the primary payer and the entity that can see the biggest picture, needs to define a minimum standard of protection that every American can expect."

For now, hospital overflow, purchases of the anti-flu drug Tamiflu, plans for school closures, and how states are practicing for an outbreak are emerging as initial indicators of readiness.

A new study by Levi's group suggests half the states would run out of hospital beds within two weeks of a moderately severe pandemic outbreak, not even as bad as a 1918 outbreak.

In interviews conducted by the AP in every state, health chiefs repeatedly said they know their hospitals will be overrun -- but that having enough beds isn't the most critical issue.

"We don't have the health care workers to take care of all the patients," explained Alabama State Health Officer Don Williamson.

Indeed, nursing shortages and other issues mean that today, hospitals around the country may have staff available for just 60 percent or so of their beds. In a pandemic, some of those workers are going to be sick or caring for ill relatives, not at work.

That's where some states are getting creative.

Those trailers parked in strategic spots around Colorado hold a total of 6,500 beds that could be set up in school gyms or event halls, anywhere with power, water and bathrooms.

"Where we're best prepared is a place to put people," said Dr. Ned Calonge, chief medical officer of the Colorado Department of Public Health and Environment.

Now, the state is recruiting volunteers to take care of the people who will lie in those beds, creating a master list of health workers not usually involved in flu care, from pharmacists to physical therapists, who could be credentialed now and put on standby.

El Paso County, in addition, wants to set up a phone bank of retired doctors to advise people on when to go to crowded doctors' offices and when to just sneeze at home.

Louisiana has discussed expanding visiting hours so relatives can help with some patient care, or even giving recovering patients some light duty.

"There's no easy answer. You have to be thinking creatively with what you have, rather than thinking you'll be able to find accessory staff," said Dr. Frank Welch, the state's immunization director.

California budgeted $18 million this year to buy three 200-bed mobile hospitals, and $78 million more to buy equipment -- including 20,000 beds -- for what officials call "alternate care sites."

The idea: The very sickest get hospitalized; the moderately ill stay home; those in between get care on cots at schools or fairgrounds.

Adds Dr. Bob England, health director for Maricopa County, Ariz., "We have to set up some kind of system for checking on folks (at home) and weeding out the people who really need to come in."

Inside hospitals, shortfalls will go beyond beds. For example, Georgia predicts 20,000 of its citizens would need ventilators over the months of a severe pandemic. In the entire state, there are 1,500. Officials just bought 2,000 portable versions to truck to different hospitals as needed, but worry they won't be durable enough.

Because it will take months to custom-brew a vaccine once a pandemic begins, flu-treating medicines, mostly Tamiflu, form the backbone of the nation's preparations. World flu authorities recommend stockpiling enough for a quarter of the population, or 75 million Americans.

The Bush administration is in the process of buying enough to treat 44 million people, and will hold each state's share in a national stockpile.

States are supposed to buy enough to treat the remaining 31 million people, doses they would store. The federal government negotiated a cheap price and offered to chip in 25 percent of the cost, but told states "we need you to come the rest of the way," Raub said.

Most states say they do plan to buy at least some of those outstanding doses, although at least nine still are awaiting money for the purchases from their state legislatures.

And at least four states don't know if they'll spend their own scarce dollars for the extra purchases, saying the drugs might not work against a super-flu -- or expire before they're needed.

"There's a chance that it might be useful, but there's also a chance that it might not be useful at all," frets Arizona assist health director Will Humble. The state used a $1 million federal grant to purchase enough medicine for 66,000 people; he isn't sure if it will buy more.

Nevada spent a $2 million federal grant on anti-flu drugs, but none of its health districts was interested in buying more.

"There are always competing uses for the money," said state health officer Dr. Bradford Lee. "We're trying to balance what may be needed for a disease that doesn't exist with needs that are immediate."

Whether they buy their own stocks or not, many states don't yet know how they'll successfully dispense their share of the nationally stockpiled Tamiflu and other supplies once federal workers deliver it. A new requirement heading for the states: Figure out exactly how they'll handle the supplies so they get to doctors or pharmacies for proper dispersal.

"Some of these pallets weigh more than 350 pounds," noted Raub. "We think it (the plan) ought to be something more than 'Stick it in the back of the state police car and drive it somewhere.'"

The way to know if all these preparations have a shot at working is to practice them, Raub said -- and there have been few statewide drills yet. But some communities are trying innovative dry runs.

In Hawaii, volunteers pretended to be sick during a mock drive-thru clinic on the island of Maui, letting health workers practice how fast they could decide who to pull out their cars and hospitalize -- and who to send back home.

In Minnesota and Idaho, health workers handed out M&Ms to rehearse how they'd dispense anti-flu drugs.

Communities in at least 15 states have practiced mass vaccination, most by testing how fast they could give people the regular winter flu shot. Billings, Mont., vaccinated more than 6,300 people in a day.

In Washington, Benton and Franklin counties held drive-thru flu shots. They underestimated the demand, and the traffic.

Here's the rub: CDC's Wortley doesn't think super-fast vaccination is the best to practice. The first scarce doses of vaccine to arrive in each state will be reserved for high-risk groups, such as health care workers and those most at risk of death. The federal government currently is debating if other people needed to keep key industries going, such as grocery truck drivers and power-company workers, should be added to that list. But it won't be first-come, first-served.

"You're potentially talking about a vaccination campaign that draws out over more than a year," Wortley warned. "Really the issue isn't how many people can you vaccinate in a day. The issue is how do you pull off this type of campaign where people are going to be wanting vaccine and there's not enough?"

As for drive-thru flu shots, she jokes that it's "the American way," but doubts it will work because of traffic jams.

With scarce vaccine and still unclear drug stocks, strategies to slow the next pandemic "will be primarily classical public health measures that go back to the Victorian era or before," Raub warns -- such measures as staying home when sick and avoiding crowded places.

That's where school closings come in. Children are prime spreaders of the flu, but it's unclear whether closing schools will really help -- and if so, when they should shut. Still, most states told the AP they'd probably leave that decision to local school officials.

"If we just close the schools and everyone goes to the mall, we haven't gained anything," pointed out Jay Butler, Alaska's deputy health director.

Wyoming hopes schools can stay open, so parents don't have to leave their jobs to care for young children.

"Think how that will impact all the doctor's offices, hospitals, grocery stores," said state epidemiologist Tracy Douglas Murphy.

What if states do all this planning and the next pandemic never arrives? Much of the work is applicable to other disasters, too, from earthquakes to bioterrorism.

"People forget that you're supposed to be doing all-hazards preparedness," said Washington Secretary of Health Mary C. Selecky.

"We're trying to be prepared for a range of events," agreed Alabama emergency planner Kent Speigner, his voice echoing in a cavernous warehouse where the state stores flu supplies right next to smallpox supplies. "We really don't know what's coming next."

Grassroots efforts needed to prevent bird flu pandemic

2006-12-15T10:46:00.000-08:00

Funmi Peter-Omale
Abuja

The United States government yesterday warned that the avian flu, popularly known as the bird flu, may mutate into a deadly pandemic worldwide and could end up claiming millions of lives globally, especially in developing countries.

The US leader of Delegation on Avian and Pandemic Influenza, Ambassador John Lange, stated this at a press briefing at the US Embassy, Abuja, yesterday.

Lange stated that the avian flu requires constant surveillance, which the US is trying to establish through broad-based cooperation to prevent an outbreak of the pandemic in case the avian virus mutates.

According to him, there is need for cooperative action to be taken down to the grassroots where many rural dwellers are exposed to the virus without knowledge of its deadly impact when they come in contact with chickens.

The ambassador, who has just attended an international avian influenza conference in Bamako, Mali, said concerns were raised on key countries in the world, which include Nigeria, Indonesia and Egypt.

He stated that the US government was working closely with the Nigerian government to develop a strategy, just as he commended Nigeria on the level of bio-security measures set up by a farm he visited in Kaduna State.

He said the avian flu was a blessing in disguise because it made people realise the importance of improving bio-security measures on farms. He therefore urged more global action against the influenza.

The six-man US team is in Nigeria to identify opportunities and constraints in combating the spread of bird flu in the country and appropriate strategies to support it to contain the disease.

He said further that his team had met with the Minister of Agriculture, Alhaji Adamu Bello, and stakeholders from the Poultry Farmers' Associations and other international development partners in furtherance of the goal.

The US government last month announced the donation of $1m to the Food and Agricultural Organisation (FAO) office in Nigeria to help eradicate the disease.

The new grant complements previous support to Nigeria of more than $2m since the first reports of the presence of the disease in poultry farms in February.

Copyright © 2006 This Day. All rights reserved. Distributed by AllAfrica Global

Model for containment of pandemic

2006-12-15T10:42:00.000-08:00

IOM says community measures may help in a pandemic

Robert Roos * News Editor

Dec 14, 2006 (CIDRAP New) – The Institute of Medicine (IOM) weighed in with a clear "maybe" this week on whether community interventions such as school closures, quarantine, and respiratory etiquette could help blunt the impact of an influenza pandemic.

After looking at mathematical models and historical evidence, an IOM committee said that a wide range of community interventions may be helpful, but there is no conclusive evidence for their effectiveness.

"It is almost impossible to say that any of the community interventions have been proven ineffective," says the committee's report. "However, it is also almost impossible to say that the interventions, either individually or in combination, will be effective in mitigating an influenza pandemic."

"There is simply a dearth of strong evidence concerning the efficacy of community containment strategies, which is particularly troublesome given the fact that many of the interventions will carry significant economic, social, ethical, and logistical consequences," adds the report, titled "Modeling Community Containment for Pandemic Influenza: A Letter Report."

Containment measures endorsed by the panel include home isolation of patients plus social support, voluntary sheltering at home, quarantine, hand hygiene, respiratory etiquette, preventive antiviral treatment, and community restrictions such as school closures. The group also supported standard public health measures such as disease surveillance and contact tracing.

But the panel warned that public health officials, in recommending such steps, should take care not to overstate the evidence for their effectiveness. The group also said that any plans to use such measures should be linked with plans for mitigating their side effects.

The report, released Dec 12, was prepared by a 13-member committee chaired by Adel A.F. Mahmoud, MD, PhD, former president of Merck Vaccines. It is based on a workshop held Oct 25 in Washington, DC.

The committee reviewed 6 mathematical simulations of community containment strategies and found none of them entirely convincing. Many key assumptions used in the models, such as those regarding virus transmissibility and compliance with interventions, were based on little evidence, the report says. Accordingly, the panel calls for prospective epidemiologic studies of seasonal flu to bolster the assumptions used in the models.

The report also critiques existing models for focusing too narrowly on flu-related outcome measures and ignoring other effects of interventions. For example, extended school closings could expose children to increased violence or result in malnutrition by depriving children of free or subsidized school lunches.

The committee also reviewed several analyses of data from the 1918 flu pandemic. These included preliminary results from Dr. Howard Markel of a study of nonpharmaceutical interventions (NPIs) in 45 US cities. He concluded that NPIs may have lowered peak death rates and flattened the epidemic curves in those cities, though some cities had severe epidemics despite using NPIs.

Similarly, Dr. Marc Lipsitch found in a study of 17 cities that early interventions were significantly associated with lower peak death rates and that early school closures were most closely linked with lower peaks. Further, an analysis presented by Dr. Neil Ferguson, combining 1918 data with mathematical modeling, suggested that community interventions could significantly reduce overall illness rates if they were imposed for the full duration of the pandemic.

Summarizing the lessons of the simulation models and historical analyses, the report says, "The models generally suggest that a combination of targeted antivirals and NPIs can delay and flatten the epidemic peak, but the evidence is less convincing that they can reduce the overall size of the epidemic. Delay of the epidemic peak is critically important because it allows additional time for vaccine development and antiviral production. Lowering the peak of the epidemic is crucial also because it can reduce the burden on healthcare infrastructure by avoiding an extremely large influx of patients."

Participants in the workshop said differences between the world of 1918 and today may limit the usefulness of historical data, the report notes. For two examples, population density is different today, and antibiotics now available to treat secondary infections could increase survival.

The committee's conclusion on the key question of community restrictions, such as closing schools and limiting public gatherings, is that they have a role, but the evidence does not permit any predictions about the effects of specific types of restrictions or the comparative effects of voluntary versus mandatory restrictions.

As with any infectious disease, the evidence indicates that early restrictions are better than later ones," the report says. "The main effect might be to slow the time to peak of the outbreak in a community, which could be important for hospital-based management of ill patients and to allow for delivery of vaccine if available."

In other conclusions, the report says there is probably a role for isolating sick people at home while providing social support for them, though this is based mainly on common sense and evidence from other illnesses.

Other measures the committee affirmed as potentially beneficial, based on varying kinds of evidence, include:

* Surveillance and case reporting, rapid diagnosis, hand hygiene, and respiratory etiquette
* Antiviral prophylaxis and treatment in households and healthcare settings
* Contact tracing to allow contacts to take actions such as voluntary sheltering and quarantine
* Risk communication, meaning the identification of "key and trusted spokespersons" to promote public acceptance of community containment measures

The committee offers 11 recommendations for improving the understanding and use of community interventions. One calls for the development of "decision-aid models that can be readily linked to surveillance data to provide real-time feedback during a pandemic."

The IOM report's release came a day after health officials meeting in Atlanta heard about Markel's research suggesting that cities which had implemented early "social distancing" measures in the pandemic of 1918 had lower death rates than other cities.

According to an Associated Press (AP) report on the meeting, researchers found that cities such as St. Louis, which instituted social distancing at least 2 weeks before the peak of the local epidemic, had flu-related death rates less than half that of Philadelphia, which was slower to act.

Markel, of the University of Michigan, is conducting the research with the Centers for Disease Control and Prevention, the AP reported. Markel called the effort "a Manhattan project of history."

So far, evidence shows that the more restrictions were used and the longer they were in place, the milder the pandemic, the story said. Wearing masks in public, restricting door-to-door sales, canceling church, and quarantining sick people were among the measures that seemed helpful. But the researchers said they hadn't determined which measures were most effective, and they couldn't prove those steps were the reason some cities did better than others.

One factor that may confuse the interpretation of the 1918 data on community interventions is that the two waves of the pandemic that year might have affected cities differently, according to Michael T. Osterholm, PhD, MPH, director of the University of Minnesota Center for Infectious Disease Research and Policy, publisher of the CIDRAP Web site.

The pandemic began with a relatively mild wave in the spring of 1918, and was followed by a second, much more severe and widespread wave in the fall. Osterholm told CIDRAP News there is strong evidence that military camps that were hard hit in the spring had lower illness and death rates in the fall wave, presumbably because many people developed immunity. He suggested that the same might have been true of cities.

"All of us really want to demonstrate protection from these interventions—it's our greatest hope for a future pandemic—but we also want to be certain that the information we give people is based on science and not wishful thinking," Osterholm commented.

IOM. Modeling community containment for pandemic influenza: a letter report. Released Dec 11, 2006 [Full text]

China talks the talk

2006-12-15T09:49:00.000-08:00

Chinese vice premier urges to strengthen bird flu prevention

Chinese Vice Premier Hui Liangyu has urged concerned departments to strengthen bird flu prevention in face of new cases reported in other countries.

China has made some achievements in fighting against the epidemic in the autumn and winter seasons, said Hui.

The Ministry of Health spokesman said last week that China has not seen any new cases of animal or human bird flu infections since the onset of winter.

However, the vice premier warned of possible outbreaks as new cases have been reported recently in other countries and the peak season for poultry trade will come with the arrival of the New Year and the Spring Festival.

The Ministry of Agriculture has asked local veterinarian departments to strengthen vaccination of poultry and conduct stricter monitoring.

It will launch a nationwide inspection over animal-related products in later December to ensure that they are free of bird flu virus.

About 47,000 poultry birds died in 10 outbreaks of bird flu in seven provinces on the Chinese mainland this year, with another 2.94 million fowls culled, said the ministry in November.

The cases of human infection with bird flu numbered 13 this year, six more than last year, according to the Ministry of Health.

Source: Xinhua

Pandemic: Is it time to get scared?

2006-12-14T08:26:00.000-08:00

By Dr. Craig van Roekens

For the Times Herald-Record
December 13, 2006

The media transmits the latest fear, outbreak and disaster instantaneously. Avian flu pandemic is on the way!

With so many things to worry about from killer bees to flesh-eating bacteria, not to mention death and taxes and the kids' education, do you really need to worry about one more problem?

Apparently, much of the government, as well as the health-care and emergency preparedness community, feels you do.

In fact, just as we get ready for another winter flu season, emergency drills involving pandemics and respiratory illnesses are taking place statewide using federal funding and coordinating multiple agencies, hospitals and counties.

So, just a refresher.

Pandemic is Greek for worldwide outbreak. Influenza is just one of many viruses affecting humans. There are two basic strains of influenza, A and B, with many different serotypes.

Every year, the virus changes somewhat and is either stronger or weaker. Every year, vaccine makers attempt to devise a vaccine that will be effective based on predictions of serotype mutations.

Unlike polonium 210 or anthrax, influenza is contagious. It is spread human to human via airborne transmission of inhaled droplets as well as by hand-to-hand contact. Influenza is typically even more contagious than TB or smallpox.

The concern about the highly lethal H5N1 avian flu strain identified in eastern Asia is that the human reservoir does not have any significant immunity to this virus and we have no clearly proven effective anti-virals.

So far, human-to-human transmission of this avian strain appears quite limited. Even so, whether it is this or another novel strain of influenza or even another virus, it is likely there will be another pandemic.

In 1918, flu pandemic was responsible for perhaps 50 million worldwide fatalities, with almost 1 million U.S. deaths, including at least 12,000 in New York.

More recent pandemics were not nearly as devastating. The 1957 pandemic caused 70,000 U.S. deaths, the 1968 pandemic 34,000.

As a U.S. citizen with access to the best acute health-care in the world, you may feel safe. But computer simulations as well as tabletop drills suggest otherwise. In the event of a pandemic, orderly mass vaccinations, antiviral distribution, work stoppages, quarantine or shelter-in-place will be challenging at best.

Complacency is not likely to confer survival advantages. So please read on and consider taking these minimal steps:

s Wash your hands. Often. Your mother was right.

s Eat your chicken soup, eat your vegetables and fruits, get some exercise, get some sleep, and be happy. Your grandmother was right.

s Please cover your mouth when you cough or sneeze, please wear a hat, and please stay home if you're sick. Your teacher was right.

s Get your flu shot (barring contraindications), maintain your own emergency plan with food, medicines, communications, meeting places, medical and critical information, and try to stay rationally informed. The government and health community are right.

Emergency physicians and nurses, first responders, hospitals, health departments, local, regional and state officials are all preparing, but nothing will be effective without your help.

Have a healthy, happy, safe holiday season, and please wash your hands.

On the Web

For more information about flu pandemic preparedness, go to:

www.pandemicflu.gov

www.cdc.org

www.health.state.ny.us

Dr. Craig van Roekens is emergency physician director of Vassar Brothers Medical Center in Poughkeepsie and is an active leader in local, regional and state emergency preparedness issues. He, his wife and their triplets want you to be prepared.

Duck die off in Idaho prompts questions

2006-12-13T20:26:00.000-08:00

By Laura Zuckerman

SALMON, Idaho (Reuters) - Officials scrambled on Wednesday to determine what has caused the deaths of thousands of mallard ducks in south-central Idaho near the Utah border.

Although wildlife experts are downplaying any links to bird flu, they have sent samples to government labs to test for the deadly H5N1 flu strain, among other pathogens.

Officials with the federal Bureau of Homeland Security have been also called in to help with the probe.

"We think the possibility of avian flu is very remote but we're not ruling anything out at this point in time," said Dave Parish, regional supervisor for the Idaho Department of Fish and Game. "We want to make sure all the bases are covered."

Wildlife officials are calling the massive die-off alarming, with the number of dead mallards rising from 1,000 on Tuesday to more than 2,000 by Wednesday afternoon. "We've never seen anything like this -- ever," Parrish said.

A hunter alerted state conservation officials after finding a handful of dead ducks along a creek near Burley, about 150 miles southeast of Boise, on Friday.

By Wednesday, dead and dying birds clogged sections of the stream and littered its banks. Officials have posted signs warning hunters and others not to touch or eat the birds until a cause of death has been identified.

Preliminary findings by state veterinarians suggest the mallards succumbed to a bacterial infection, officials said. They said it was unclear why a similar outbreak had never before occurred in Idaho.

SIMILAR EVENT IN IOWA LAST YEAR

On Wednesday, officials outfitted with protective gear were gathering hundreds of mallard carcasses. Wildlife managers said the birds will be incinerated.

The only mallard die-off roughly equivalent in recent years happened in Waterloo, Iowa in 2005, when 500 ducks died from a fungus they contracted by eating moldy grain, according to a report by the U.S. Geological Survey's National Wildlife Health Center.

The center's Kathryn Converse, a wildlife disease specialist, said early clues suggest the outbreak in Idaho is not linked to insecticides applied to surrounding croplands because it is not affecting other bird species or predators feeding on the dead ducks.

Mallards are the most common duck species in the United States, with populations nationwide. Most mallards that winter in Idaho originate from Alberta, Canada, with a smaller percentage from the Northwest Territories, said Tom Keegan, regional wildlife manager with Idaho Fish and Game.

Although the magnitude and the pace of the die-off is unusual, officials said, migratory birds and other wild animals are more likely to get sick when large numbers congregate in small areas.

That can happen to mallards in the winter, when many of the waterways they depend upon are frozen.

Compounding the seasonal phenomenon is the ever-shrinking habitat available to wildlife because of sprawling development and expanding farm operations.

© Reuters 2006. All Rights Reserved.

Decreasing viral load in H5N1 may lead to good outcomes

2006-12-13T05:38:00.000-08:00

Expert says late antiviral treatment may still help H5N1 patients

Robert Roos * News Editor* Cidrap

Dec 12, 2006 (CIDRAP News) – A virologist who has treated H5N1 avian influenza patients in Vietnam said the antiviral drug oseltamivir may help avian flu patients even when started later than 2 days after illness onset—generally considered too late, according to a Reuters report today.

The standard advice about oseltamivir for treatment of seasonal flu is that it can shorten the illness if it is started within 2 days after the first symptoms. But Menno de Jong of the Hospital for Tropical Diseases in Ho Chi Minh City said the drug seemed to help four of his patients even though it was started later.

De Jong said the assumption that oseltamivir works only if started within 48 hours may be true only for human flu viruses. He said the H5N1 virus is known to continue replicating in humans on the seventh or eighth day of symptoms.

"In my experience, there is a clear suggestion that there was still virus replication [when we made] a late start in treatment," de Jong told Reuters at a conference in Singapore. "In four of my patients, there was very rapid clearance of the virus from the throat and all four survived."

De Jong told the conference audience, "If you can decrease the viral load [with drugs], you can have a good outcome. Even those who are treated late had good results."

But the report didn't mention any other evidence that late treatment can work, besides de Jong's anecdotal findings in a few of his own patients.

De Jong, who treated 17 H5N1 patients in 2004 and 2005, of whom 12 died, agreed with other experts that starting treatment early is still best, Reuters reported.

The United States and many other countries have been stockpiling oseltamivir in the face of the risk that avian flu will spark a pandemic. No one knows how effective the drug will be if the virus evolves into a pandemic strain.

The World Health Organization (WHO) recommends oseltamivir as first-line treatment for H5N1 avian flu (with zanamivir [Relenza] as the second choice). The WHO guidelines do not say that treatment must be started within the first 2 days of illness to be effective.

The US Centers for Disease Control and Prevention says oseltamivir and zanamivir have been shown to reduce the duration of seasonal flu by about 1 day, provided treatment is begun within 48 hours of the first symptoms.

See also:

WHO guidelines on pharmacologic management of patients infected with H5N1
http://www.who.int/csr/disease/avian_influenza/guidelines/pharmamanagement/en/index.html

CDC info on indications for antiviral treatment of patients with flu
http://www.cdc.gov/flu/professionals/treatment/indications.htm

Culling proceeds in South Korea

2006-12-13T05:31:00.000-08:00

SKorea culls 365,000 poultry after 3rd bird flu case in less than a month
The Associated Press
Published: December 13, 2006
SKorea culls 365,000 poultry after 3rd bird flu case in less than a month
The Associated Press
Published: December 13, 2006

SEOUL, South Korea: South Korea completed the slaughter of hundreds of thousands of poultry Wednesday after the country's third reported case of bird flu in a month, an official said.

About 365,000 quails and chickens have been destroyed in Gimje, about 262 kilometers (160 miles) south of Seoul, since Tuesday, a local government official said, asking not to be named citing protocol.

The government confirmed an outbreak of bird flu at a quail farm in the city on Monday.

That brought the total number of poultry culled in the three bird flu cases since last month to more than 1.13 million. More than 770,000 chickens were destroyed as a result of the first two outbreaks.

The virus that caused the latest outbreak was the H5 strain, and most likely H5N1, although this was not immediately confirmed, the Agriculture Ministry said.

The first two cases were caused by the H5N1 virus, which the World Health Organization reports has killed at least 154 people worldwide since late 2003.

The site of the third outbreak is about 18 kilometers (11 miles) south of the first outbreak site.

In the last known outbreak of bird flu in South Korea, in 2003, about 5.3 million birds were culled.

Infections among people have been traced to contact with infected birds, but experts fear the virus could mutate into a form that could create a pandemic among humans.

SEOUL, South Korea: South Korea completed the slaughter of hundreds of thousands of poultry Wednesday after the country's third reported case of bird flu in a month, an official said.

About 365,000 quails and chickens have been destroyed in Gimje, about 262 kilometers (160 miles) south of Seoul, since Tuesday, a local government official said, asking not to be named citing protocol.

The government confirmed an outbreak of bird flu at a quail farm in the city on Monday.

That brought the total number of poultry culled in the three bird flu cases since last month to more than 1.13 million. More than 770,000 chickens were destroyed as a result of the first two outbreaks.

The virus that caused the latest outbreak was the H5 strain, and most likely H5N1, although this was not immediately confirmed, the Agriculture Ministry said.

The first two cases were caused by the H5N1 virus, which the World Health Organization reports has killed at least 154 people worldwide since late 2003.

The site of the third outbreak is about 18 kilometers (11 miles) south of the first outbreak site.

In the last known outbreak of bird flu in South Korea, in 2003, about 5.3 million birds were culled.

Infections among people have been traced to contact with infected birds, but experts fear the virus could mutate into a form that could create a pandemic among humans.

Pandemic Flu Model for British

2006-12-13T05:26:00.000-08:00

Bird flu could infect 26 million
Wednesday, 13th December 2006, 08:45
Category: Healthy LivingBird flu could kill almost one million and spread to 26 million Britons in the worst case scenario, a new model has predicted.

The report published by the Journal of The Royal Society Interface warns a pandemic could hospitalise 13 million people and says there is an "urgent need for preparedness and co-ordinated global strategies", labelling the projections "alarming".

A collaboration between Harvard, Los Alamos and Manitoba university, the study claims countries should not concentrate on medicines to combat bird flu because there are not enough anti-viral drugs, designed to suppress the illness, and it would take six months to develop a vaccine that would immunise the population.

The authors say their model shows that simply by isolating bird flu sufferers and reducing human contact, deaths could substantially be reduced.

While it predicts 933,514 deaths, 26 million infections and 13 million patients over the course of a pandemic, when transmission control methods, such as quarantine and isolation are entered into the equation, the number of predicted deaths slump to 660,215.

The number of people infected would drop to 18 million and the number in hospital would be 9.1 million.

However the UK also has stocks of anti-viral drugs, that would be given to treat people with bird flu symptoms, as well as to their relatives to try and prevent the disease spreading.

At its most efficient, the model predicts this would mean just three people would die in a pandemic, although this is highly unlikely.

This week, new figures revealed that Britain had one of the worst MRSA infection rates in the country, casting doubts on how well infection control measures could work in hospitals.

The figure also relies on three quarters of the population having access to anti-viral drugs, whereas Britain is building a stockpile for just 20 per cent of the population.

However, one of the authors, Miriam Nuno, a researcher at Harvard, said the country was dealing with the threat well compared to America.

She said: "It is very apparent that the US is hoping to get enough vaccines to mass-vaccinate the whole population, but the likelihood of that happening is slim.

"Right now the vaccine would take six months to develop, so we need to focus on interventions that do not rely on a vaccine.

"If you carry out very strict measures, you can reduce people to people contact. Hospitals would quarantine patients and many would not go to hospital, but self-isolate - it is about keeping infected people away from others.

"Other simple things could be that people don't go into the office, but work from home."

Ms Nuno said the UK was on the right course of action, but said the real victims of a pandemic could be those in the third world who have little or no stockpiles of antiviral drugs and little hope of getting a vaccine before it is gobbled up by the West.

She continued: "The truth is that all Western countries will get the vaccine first, but a pandemic would be a global problem and we need to work together.

"With many developing countries, all they will be able to do is enforce transmission control measures."

Ms Nuno added that the advantage of the new model was that any country could use it to help form a strategy to combat bird flu because it did not need complex data to make its predictions.

She said: "A lot of the current worked has relied on large simulation models that need precise information, whereas our model just requires demographic data, so it is quite simple for anyone to use."

Copyright © 2006 National News +44(0)207 684 3000

Preps for bird flu by poultry farmers underway in US

2006-12-13T05:21:00.000-08:00

WorldPoultry.Net says:
US braces itself for bird flu

// 13 Dec 2006

Avian influenza has yet to strike the US, but in one of the nation's leading poultry producing regions, preparations are being made.

At a bird flu briefing this week, Georgia state veterinarian, Stan Crane, told a room full of poultry experts that Georgia's agricultural response team, which would be in charge of quarantines in an outbreak, is rethinking its method of disposing of infected carcasses, with incineration being preferred to mass burial.
Federal officials and state agricultural leaders had called the meeting to warn chicken farmers in Georgia, the nation's leading poultry producing state, to stay vigilant despite even though the H5N1 virus has not yet been spotted in the US.
"We must always keep our guard up, always look for it," said David Swayne, the director of the Southeast Poultry Research Laboratory.
In the US, which produces more than 35 billion pounds of poultry a year, many producers have taken extreme precautions, outfitting visitors with biohazard suits and disinfecting shoes and tires entering the vicinity of each chicken coop.
Although the deadly virus has not infected a human in the US, officials have detected a low-grade strain of the virus in wild birds in Pennsylvania and elsewhere that poses no threat to people. To thwart the spread of the virus, federal authorities have restricted poultry imports from high-risk countries, stepped up efforts to test wild birds and have urged each state to develop its own emergency response plan in case the disease strikes.
"We're planning for the worst," she said, "and hoping for the best."

South Korea's ills

2006-12-11T17:02:00.000-08:00

Bird Flu Outbreak In Quail Farm In South Korea

An outbreak of H5N1 bird flu was confirmed at a quail farm in Kimje, South Korea, say officials from the Ministry of Agriculture.

The farm has 270,000 quail. Authorities are currently removing the quail from the farm and have set up a quarantine zone around the area to stem the spread of the disease. All poultry within 500 meters of the farm will be destroyed, say officials.

This is be the country's third outbreak in one month. On November 18th and November 26th there were two outbreaks in two separate chicken farms - both farms are within a 22 km radius of the infected quail farm.

So far, no humans have become ill, say ministry officials.

Approximately 3,000 quail died of bird flu during the weekend.

Since 2003 over 5 million poultry have been destroyed in South Korea, in measures to prevent the spread of bird flu.

Ministry of Agriculture and Forestry, Republic of Korea (English version)

Written by: Christian Nordqvist
Editor: Medical News Today

Muslims asked to get flu shots

2006-12-10T10:15:00.000-08:00

Saudi Arabia: Hajj pilgrims need flu shots
-----------------------------------------------
People planning to make the Hajj pilgrimage should get flu shots
beforehand to reduce the risk of a global flu pandemic, say British
doctors. At the end of January 2007, 2 million Muslim pilgrims from
almost every country on earth will converge on Saudi Arabia to visit
Mecca, the final resting place of the Prophet Muhammad.

Although pilgrims see this as a deeply spiritual journey, Aziz
Sheikh, an epidemiologist at the University of Edinburgh, has issued
a warning that such a gathering makes the possibility of a global flu
pandemic much more likely. Overcrowding is common during the Hajj,
and Sheikh said epidemiologists think at least one in 3 pilgrims will
develop respiratory symptoms during their stay. That ratio increases
when pilgrims come from economically developing nations.

Since Saudi authorities already require that people entering the
country for the Hajj bring proof of immunization for meningitis,
Sheikh and his colleagues thought that adding flu shots to the
regimen would not be either inconvenient or unacceptable. They also
suggested tighter surveillance to identify newly emerging flu strains
while pilgrims are in the country and international cooperation
overseen by the World Health Organization to assemble the resources
and logistics that will protect the planet's health.

--
ProMED-mail

Will the nuclear plants be safe in pandemic?

2006-12-10T09:41:00.000-08:00

NRC to be ready for bird flu
Posted on : Wed, 06 Dec 2006 20:06:00 GMT | Author : Energy News Editor
News Category : Environment

WASHINGTON, Dec. 6 U.S. nuclear officials have issued a plan to maintain safety regulations of nuclear plants if a bird flu pandemic hits the country.

Bird flu was perceived as a serious potential threat as it caused hundreds of human deaths and resulted in millions of animals dead or killed, although the transmission of the virus has waned.

The U.S. Nuclear Regulatory Commission outlined its response if bird flu does materialize with an estimated 40 percent or more of the workforce being affected for a year to a year and a half.

This is a plan that we hope we never have to implement, NRC Commissioner Jeffrey Merrifield said. But it is prudent to plan ahead and anticipate what actions might be needed and what prioritization of activities must be done in order for the NRC to maintain its essential, core mission of protecting public health and safety.The least important work would be set aside, with the remainder of the workforce allocated to ensuring safety compliance, incident responses and communication internally and with the public.

The NRC will not allow operational safety or security to be jeopardized regardless of the pandemic situation, according to an NRC release. The nuclear industry is devising its own emergency bird flu plan and is discussing its efforts and potential needs with the NRC, the release said.

Copyright 2006 by UPI

Its hard and costly to fight H5N1. Many don't care!

2006-12-10T09:35:00.000-08:00

Bird flu experts meet to fight virus, complacency
06 Dec 2006 18:57:33 GMT
Source: Reuters

REUTERS/STAFF

By Alistair Thomson

BAMAKO, Dec 6 (Reuters) - Experts fighting bird flu around the world met on Wednesday to replenish their war chest and plot the next stage of their campaign to control the disease and avert a devastating human flu pandemic.

The three-day meeting in Mali, the fourth global bird flu summit since late last year, includes a donor conference on Friday seeking an extra $1.2 billion to $1.5 billion over 2-3 years to add to $1.9 billion pledged in Beijing last January.

But the meeting began with a warning that complacency threatened to undermine international efforts against bird flu.

"Technical experts are sometimes accused of having overestimated the risks from this disease, or of exaggerating its potential threat," said Modibo Traore, head of the African Union's InterAfrican Bureau for Animal Resources.

"The rampant demotivation that has resulted seems to have affected the main players in the struggle on all continents, and notably the donor community," Traore told the opening session.

The outbreak of highly pathogenic H5N1 avian influenza began in Asia in 2003 and spread rapidly in early 2006.

It has been detected in more than 50 countries around the world, including eight in Africa, where experts fear veterinary and human health systems are inadequate to contain outbreaks.

"It's not a lot of money: $500 million per year, divided by the population of Africa is less than a dollar each a year," United Nations influenza coordinator David Nabarro told Reuters in the Malian capital Bamako.

So far the virus has killed 154 people who came into contact with sick birds and there are 258 reported cases worldwide.

But worse than the devastating effects on vital poultry industries in poor and densely populated countries, scientists fear the virus could mutate to jump between humans, triggering a human flu pandemic that could kill millions of people.

"The potential costs of an influenza pandemic would be of the order of $1-2 trillion ... and the actual cost of avian influenza thus far has been in the multiple billions of dollars," Nabarro said.

TICKING CLOCK

Ordinary flu kills around 250,000 people around the world each year, but every 20 years or so the virus changes enough to cause a much more deadly pandemic -- the worst in living memory being "Spanish influenza" which killed anywhere from 20 million to 100 million people in 1918 at the end of World War One.

The last pandemic was in 1968 and experts say another pandemic could happen any time.

"There is still a danger and the best solution is to finish with the virus in animals," said Bernard Vallat, director general of the World Organisation for Animal Health (OIE).

Scientists say that is most likely to happen in Asia, which has the most infections, but Africa remains a weak link due to poor veterinary and public health services which are likely to give infections more time to spread before being detected.

"The resources need to be mobilised and they need to be targeted at the countries at risk," said Ok Pannenborg, senior health advisor at the World Bank.

The U.N.'s Nabarro was upbeat, saying with the right advice and support African countries could step up their controls to combat bird flu -- and that rich nations would be prepared to foot the $500 million-a-year bill.

"Yes, I think the money will be pledged, because I think the world cares," he said.

AlertNet news is provided by

To change a tradition: hard or impossible?

2006-12-07T16:34:00.000-08:00

07 Dec 2006 15:11:41 GMT
Source: Reuters

By Alistair Thomson

BAMAKO, Dec 7 (Reuters) - African customs such as using children to rear village poultry could expose people to deadly bird flu and must be addressed to lower the risk of human infection, delegates said at a summit this week.

Experts from around the world are meeting in Mali's capital Bamako to discuss how to fight the deadly H5N1 bird flu virus and prevent it causing a human influenza pandemic.

"In Africa, it is the children's job, supervised by the women, to look after the poultry," Neil Ford, a communications adviser for the U.N. Children's Fund UNICEF in West Africa, said in a presentation to delegates late on Wednesday.

This tradition was held in high esteem by African communities as it developed children's sense of responsibility, Ford said, but it also exposed them to diseases carried by the birds -- and potentially H5N1, which has killed 154 humans around the world since 2003.

"We have to come up with solutions that are compatible with (Africans') lives and traditions," he said.

Delegates from African countries noted many of their traditions involved live poultry.

In many countries, chickens are presented as gifts to visitors and to mark special occasions, or are slaughtered in religious ceremonies.

In Benin, the West African home of voodoo, a particularly risky form of sacrifice involves participants killing a chicken by ripping out the bird's throat with their teeth.

In open-air markets throughout Africa, birds are kept tightly packed in cages with little or no separation of species, and are slaughtered, plucked and butchered on the spot with scant regard for international hygiene or disease control standards.

UNICEF's Ford said international agencies helping fight bird flu in Africa needed to talk to communities to find ways of reducing the risk of infection, both among birds and among people tending poultry.

For example, he said, it was common in villages for those tending poultry -- often children -- to single out sick chickens, slaughter them and pluck them to be cooked, in order to minimise losses in small households with little food to spare.

Although thorough cooking kills the flu virus, such practices expose the person slaughtering and preparing the bird if it is carrying avian influenza.

Changing attitudes and practices to reduce the risk of infection will take time.

"Its not going to happen very quickly, certainly not universal behaviour change," U.N. bird flu coordinator David Nabarro said in an interview.

"Make sure that you see this as a long-term issue, not something that is going to be deal with overnight."

AlertNet news is provided by

Birds migrating, scientists testing.

2006-12-07T15:51:00.000-08:00

Researchers testing for deadly bird flu at Salton Sea
No detection of deadly H5N1 virus anywhere in North America yet

Keith Matheny
The Desert Sun
December 4, 2006
The Salton Sea is one of the fronts in the biggest multi-agency bird investigation in U.S. history, seeking to determine if a deadly strain of avian flu has entered North America through migratory birds.

Federal and state officials have tested 137 waterfowl birds shot by hunters this fall at the Wister Unit of the Salton Sea's Imperial Wildlife Area, said Pam Swift, a veterinarian in the California Department of Fish and Game’s wildlife investigations laboratory. Officials plan to test 100 more birds throughout December and January, she said.

Some 60 samples of bird feces were also taken for analysis, and officials plan to collect an additional 90 samples between now and the end of January, Swift said.

Of concern is that the deadly H5N1 strain of avian flu could make its way to America via the Pacific Flyway, a migratory route used by hundreds of species of birds, including many of the approximately 400 species that use the Salton Sea as a wintering site or a stopover.

Some birds that migrate along the Pacific Flyway, such as northern pintails, nest over the summer in areas in and around Alaska, where they could potentially commingle with birds that migrate along an Asian flyway between countries where the virus is spreading.

The World Health Organization has confirmed 258 cases of human infection with the H5N1 virus, leading to 154 deaths. Most of the cases are linked to direct handling of infected poultry. There has been no sustained human-to-human transmission of the disease, but the concern is that H5N1 will evolve into a virus capable of human-to-human transmission, which could spark a pandemic like the 1918-1919 influenza outbreak that caused 50 million deaths worldwide.

Of the 80,000 birds tested throughout North America, not a single one has been found infected with the deadly strain of H5N1.

“I’m heartened that we so far haven’t had a detection,” said Brad Bortner, the U.S. Fish and Wildlife Service’s chief of migratory birds for the Pacific region.

“(But) I think it’s too early to draw conclusions on whether (the virus) will get here or not. There’s still migration occurring.”

2nd South Korea farm hit with H5N1

2006-11-28T10:05:00.001-08:00

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

2006-11-28T09:49:00.000-08:00

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

2006-11-28T09:45:00.000-08:00

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

2006-11-28T09:43:00.000-08:00

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

Greece fears outbreak

2006-11-19T07:44:00.000-08:00

Greece said it found bird flu in a wild duck shot by a hunter, adding that
more tests were underway to establish whether the virus was the strain that
can kill humans.

The H5 virus, most of whose sub-types are only lethal to birds, was
confirmed in the migratory duck killed in a coastal area of the central
prefecture of Fthiotida [Map at ],
the agriculture ministry said in a statement.

Samples from the bird will be sent to the EU Reference Laboratory for avian
influenza in England to determine whether the virus is in fact H5N1, the
highly pathogenic strain that has killed 152 people in the Far East, the
Middle East and China since 2003.

The relevant European Union authorities have also been informed, the
ministry said.

This is the first H5 case reported in Greece since the summer. Earlier in
2006, the Greek authorities confirmed 33 cases of H5N1 between February and
March, all in wild birds.

Yet even though no domestic poultry cases turned up, demand for chicken in
the country took a serious blow for weeks.

Local authorities in Fthiotida have been advised to ban the transport of
live poultry near the area where the duck was hunted.

Poultry owners have been warned to keep their flocks indoors, and the
public advised to alert the authorities to all bird carcass finds, the
ministry said.

--
ProMED-mail

Chicken pens can contaminate flood waters

2006-11-19T07:25:00.000-08:00

Officials disinfect flooded poultry farms to prevent bird flu

PATHUM THANI, Nov 19 (TNA) – Thailand's provincial livestock authorities countrywide have been ordered to disinfect poultry farms, especially those located in flood-hit provinces, to prevent further outbreaks of the deadly bird flu disease during this season, a senior official said Sunday.

Yukol Limlamthong, director-general of the Department of Livestock Development, said that while there have been no reported cases of new bird flu outbreaks in the past 108 days, provincial government livestock workers have been instructed to spray the disinfectants at farms, especially those in flood-hit provinces, when the floodwaters recede.

He said that concerned officials are also researching bird flu in chickens raised in open area regarding the possibility that the poultry would have sufficient immunity against the disease.

Senior officials from six countries – Laos, Cambodia, Vietnam, Myanmar, Malaysia and Thailand—wrapped up a three-day meeting here last week to find ways to contain the spread of animal-borne contagious diseases and to produce more effective vaccines for domestic livestock use after countries in the region have been hit by avian influenza for the past few years.

They agreed that the first priority in preventing the disease was to lay out measures on cross-border animal transport in the region as a number of countries shared common borders.

Mr. Yukol said that follow-up talks between the six countries would now be held on a bilateral basis. Thailand met with Malaysia last month, he said, while a similar meeting will take place with Myanmar next month. (TNA)-E111

Looking at the ducks in NoCal

2006-11-16T18:29:00.000-08:00

Bay City News Wire
TESTERS GATHER TO LOOK FOR BIRDS WITH H5N1 FLU VIRUS
11/16/06 11:30 PST

As part of an ongoing effort to test wild birds for the deadly avian influenza subtype H5N1, biologists from the California Department of Fish and Game and other government agencies came together this morning to catch and test wild birds in the Yolo Bypass Wildlife Area, outside Davis.

The area is a vibrant and favorite habitat for pintail ducks, which migrate along the Pacific Flyway, an extensive series of avian migration paths that run through California to Alaska and Siberia, said Patrick Foy, spokesman for the state Department of Fish and Game.

Birds that travel through California mix with birds from Asia in both Alaska and Asia, he said.

H5N1 hasn't been found in any of the 2,500 birds tested in California this year, nor elsewhere in North America, and today's efforts, which target pintail ducks, come as the department winds down a wild bird testing program that has been in effect since January.

Many birds, and ducks in particular, can carry the virus but not show symptoms, he said.

Staff from the Department of Fish and Game take one fecal sample from a bird, which is not tracked after testing, he said. Laboratories then first look for the H5 virus and, if those tests are positive, follow up with more tests for H5N1. Birds typically carry lots of viruses, he said.

The brown and white pintail ducks, which have a pointed tail, are caught by swimming into baited, passive traps or with rocket nets, which are blasted over the top of a flock of ducks settled on the water.

With the rocket nets, "if you're lucky you can catch 100 birds at a time,'' Foy said, adding that catching the birds can still be a real hit or miss operation.

Test results are available within a couple of weeks after the birds are sampled, Foy said. There is no particular cause for concern about the H5N1 virus in this round of testing, he said.

Many health care workers have been fitted. I have!

2006-11-16T18:02:00.000-08:00

Clinicians raise questions about respirator use in pandemic

Lisa Schnirring * Contributing Writer

Nov 16, 2006 (CIDRAP News) – Last month the US Department of Health and Human (HHS) called for a greater role for N95 respirators in protecting healthcare workers in the event of an influenza pandemic, and now clinicians are raising questions about potential problems such as inadequate supplies and poor fit.

The Centers for Disease Control and Prevention (CDC) fielded questions from clinicians today during a teleconference with Michael Bell, MD, associate director for infection control in the CDC's Division of Healthcare Quality Promotion.

In October, HHS issued new interim guidance saying that the use of N95 respirators, designed to stop 95% of small airborne particles, is "prudent" for medical workers providing direct care for patients with confirmed or suspected pandemic fu and is recommended when caring for patients with pneumonia. HHS also said that respirator use is prudent for support workers who have direct contact with patients.

The recommendations were a departure from guidance in the HHS pandemic influenza plan released last year, which urged healthcare workers to wear simple surgical masks, designed to block large respiratory droplets, for routine care of pandemic flu patients. Both documents recommend use of N95 protection during procedures likely to generate airborne infectious particles, such as nebulization or endotracheal intubation.

Bell emphasized that the new HHS guidance is not intended to change how clinicians respond to patients who have seasonal influenza. He said the difference in recommendations between seasonal and pandemic influenza stems from uncertainty about inherent immunity to a pandemic flu strain and potential shortages of antiviral medication and vaccines in a pandemic. "As a result, there's more attention being paid to personal protective equipment," he said.

He predicted that recommendations about respirator use will continue to evolve as researchers learn more about flu virus particle size and virulence. "The interim guidance is very much interim," he said.

Another useful thing the recent HHS respirator recommendations do is to make a distinction between respirator use and use of negative-pressure isolation rooms, Bell said. "It's one thing to supply respirators and another thing to reengineer rooms," he said.

The HHS guidance states that negative-pressure isolation is not required for routine care of patients with pandemic influenza, though such rooms should be used whenever possible for performing aerosol-generating procedures such as inhalational intubation. If negative-pressure rooms aren't available, it is prudent to perform such procedures in private rooms with the door closed or other enclosed areas, the document says.

One clinician who took part in the teleconference said she and her colleagues were worried about the supply of N95 respirators and said her hospital had difficulty obtaining enough even for routine tuberculosis care.

Another clinician had questions about reusing respirators if a pandemic occurs and the devices are in short supply. Bell said healthcare workers had to be creative during the SARS (severe acute respiratory syndrome) outbreak; some kept their masks in plastic bags and reused them. He said breathing through the mask, over time, could reduce some the electrostatic charge that provides some of the filtering mechanism. "There are no clear recommendations, though the Institute of Medicine says they are disposable and not suitable for reuse," Bell said. "There may be safer ways to reuse them."

Bell said HHS officials and other healthcare groups are brainstorming about how to stimulate more production of N95 respirators. "The companies are concerned about liability. They want to be free of that before they produce mass quantities," he said.

Other clinicians had questions about how well the N95 respirators have to fit to provide adequate protection. They said respirator products range from models that don't require any fitting to ones that require time-consuming fitting procedures. Bell said that from a regulatory perspective, OSHA recommends strict attention to the fit of the respirator. "But in a pinch, you'd expect some benefit, even if the respirator isn't a perfect fit," he said.

Some clinicians said they were already fielding questions about community use of N95 respirators. Bell responded that HHS has just drafted guidance on such use. He anticipated that the recommendations would be posted on the government's pandemic flu Web site within the next 3 or 4 weeks. Bell said HHS probably won't recommend N95 respirators to the general public unless people are caring for family members or neighbors who have pandemic influenza.

from CIDRAP

Plan, What Plan?

2006-11-16T11:11:00.000-08:00

11/16/2006
Workers Unclear About Employers' Plans for Pandemic Flu

Few working people (19 percent) are aware of any plan at their workplace to respond to a serious outbreak of pandemic flu, according to a survey conducted by the Harvard School of Public Health.

Twenty-two percent of employed adults said they are very or somewhat worried that if a severe outbreak of Pandemic flu occurred in their community, their employer would make them go to work even if they were sick. Half of respondents said that they believe that their workplace would stay open if public health officials recommended that some businesses in their community should shut down.

The survey asked employed respondents what they would do if public health officials said you should stay home from work, but their employer told them to come to work. Fifty-seven percent of respondents said they would stay at home, and 35 percent of respondents said they would go to work.

Thirty-five percent of respondents said they think that if they stayed home from work, they would still get paid; 42 percent said they think they would not get paid, and 22 percent do not know whether they would get paid or not.

The survey also asked employed respondents about the problems they might have if they were asked to stay out of work for seven to ten days, a month, and three months because of an outbreak of pandemic flu in their community.

The longer people are out of work, the greater the number of people who will face financial problems. While most employed people (74 percent) said that they believe they could miss seven to ten days of work without having serious financial problems, one in four (25 percent) said they would face such problems. A majority (57 percent) said that they think they would have serious financial problems if they had to miss work for one month, and a total of three-fourths (76 percent) said they would have such problems if they were away from work for three months.

Only about three in ten respondents (29 percent) said that if they had to stay away from the workplace for one month, they would be able to work from home for that long.

"These findings are a wake-up call for business, that employees have serious financial concerns and are unclear about the workplace plans and policies for dealing with pandemic flu," says Robert J. Blendon, professor of health policy and political analysis at the Harvard School of Public Health.

A pandemic flu is a human outbreak of a global scale, and it spreads easily among humans. There is no pandemic flu currently, but public health officials are concerned about a strain of avian flu. Avian flu occurs naturally in birds and can be transmitted from birds to humans. The current strain of avian flu is the H5N1 virus. Among humans, there is no immunity and the fatality rate for avian flu is 50 percent of diagnosed cases. So far, the avian flu cannot be easily transmitted from human to human. However, health officials are concerned that the H5N1 virus could mutate and become easily transmitted among humans. from BenefitsNext USA

Bush visit to Southeast Asia

2006-11-16T11:03:00.000-08:00

Vietnam, hailed for beating back bird flu and rallying against AIDS, is getting a chance to impress US President George W. Bush by showing just how much it has done, AP reported Thursday.

Bush is expected to visit the Pasteur Institute – one of the country's top research institutes for communicable diseases – in Ho Chi Minh City after attending the 21-member Asia-Pacific Economic Cooperation summit in the capital, Hanoi.

It is his first trip to Vietnam.

The Southeast Asias country has been deemed a bright spot in the fight against bird flu as the virulent H5N1 virus continues to plague the region.

Indonesia on Tuesday announced its second human death this week from the disease, which is likely to worsen during the approaching cooler months. Bush is to visit Jakarta after leaving Vietnam.

Vietnam has logged 42 human deaths, second only to Indonesia's 57, but has not detected any poultry outbreaks this year and no human infections since November 2005. The success is largely credited to a nationwide poultry vaccination campaign and strong political will to root out the virus.

Bird flu has killed at least 153 people worldwide since it began ravaging Asian poultry in late 2003. So far, the disease remains hard for people to catch, and most human cases have been traced to contact with infected birds, but experts fear it will mutate into a form that is easily spread among people.

"It's important that public health issues, including avian influenza and other similar pandemic threats, are on the APEC agenda, and it's a positive sign that these issues are being discussed at the highest level," said Hans Troedsson, World Health Organization representative in Vietnam. "I hope that the APEC meeting will translate into more commitment and collaboration among nations."

While touring the lab, Bush also is to learn about Vietnam's fight against AIDS. Vietnam has stepped up prevention efforts and worked to raise awareness since Bush selected it as one of the 15 countries to receive US emergency HIV/AIDS funding in June 2004.

The US government has contributed nearly US$80 million since then to fight the disease in Vietnam.

"President Bush drawing attention to the two diseases together I think is very positive," said Nancy Fee, UNAIDS country coordinator.

"It's very good that even within discussions about economic development he's highlighting these diseases, which could have a major economic impact on Vietnam if they're not handled well."

About 5,500 people, or 15 percent of those in need of anti-retroviral drugs in Vietnam, are now receiving them, compared with less than 5 percent two years ago, she said.

Experts say Vietnam is at a critical point as the number of HIV infections reaches an estimated 260,000 people. So far, most cases have been among vulnerable groups such as sex workers and injecting drug users, but the disease could soon become more generalized.

The Pasteur Institute and the National Institute of Hygiene and Epidemiology in Hanoi are the country's top two research institutes for communicable diseases.

Source: AP

From MeatNews.com word about China

2006-11-15T11:59:00.000-08:00

CHINA: A Chinese official says the country has killed nearly three million birds to keep bird flu from spreading.

China’s chief veterinary officer, Jia Youling, has announced the country has killed 2.94 million birds so far this year to control bird flu.

Jia says there have been 10 outbreaks in seven provinces during the period, with 90,000 poultry infected and 47,000 of them died.

He says 3,641 migratory birds have died of bird flu in Qinghai province and Tibet in west China this year.

In addition, a total of 20 human infections have been reported in China since 2005, and 13 of the cases took place so far this year.

Jia denied the existence and spread of a new strain of H5N1 bird flu called ‘Fujian-like virus’, as was suggested in a paper published in the Proceedings of the National Academy of Sciences (PNAS) of the United States.

Jia said, “The data used in the article are erroneous and the research methodology is unscientific. The conclusions of the paper are untenable and contravene the facts.”

Web posted: November 15, 2006
Category: Food Safety
In Europe:Chris Harris, Editor or
In North America: Bryan Salvage, Editorial Director

H5N1 virus needs to adapt for humans

2006-11-15T11:44:00.000-08:00

Scientists find mutations that let bird flu adapt to humans

November 15, 2006

Kawaokaby Terry Devitt

By comparing influenza viruses found in birds with those of the avian virus that have also infected human hosts, researchers have identified key genetic changes required for pandemic strains of bird flu.

The new work, reported in the Nov. 16 issue of the journal Nature, illustrates the genetic changes required for the H5N1 avian influenza virus to adapt to easily recognize the receptors that are the gateway to human cells.

"We identified two changes that are important," says Yoshihiro Kawaoka, the senior author of the Nature paper and a virologist at the University of Wisconsin-Madison School of Veterinary Medicine. "Both changes are needed for the H5N1 virus to recognize human receptors."

The new report provides a molecular blueprint for the genetic changes required to transform a virus that only infects birds to a virus capable of easily recognizing human receptors. Receptors are molecules on the surface of cells that permit the virus to dock with the cell and commandeer it to initiate a cascade of infection. By knowing what genetic changes are required for the virus to easily infect human cells, it may be possible to detect the emergence of pandemic strains earlier, providing public health officials and vaccine manufacturers with precious time to prepare for a global outbreak of highly pathogenic influenza.

To be successful, a virus must be able to recognize and attach to a host cell. But human and avian influenza viruses recognize different cell receptors. Avian flu viruses have demonstrated an ability to evolve to easily infect humans by exchanging genes with human viruses that subsequently permit them to recognize human receptor molecules and gain easy access to cells, typically in the human respiratory system.

The change is thought to occur when human patients are exposed at the same time to a human flu virus and an avian flu virus. Most viruses, including influenza, readily swap genes with one another.

In the new study, conducted by an international team of researchers, the viruses isolated from human patients in Vietnam and Thailand could recognize both human and avian cell receptors. By contrast, the viruses found in chickens and ducks could recognize the receptors only on avian cells.

The work helps flesh out the changes that have occurred in the worrisome strain of avian influenza virus known as H5N1, a strain some fear could be the organism that will trigger a pandemic of virulent human influenza. The avian virus has already changed dramatically from when it was first identified in 1997, says Kawaoka, who also holds an appointment at the University of Tokyo.

"There are big differences between the virus first found in 1997 and the virus we see now," Kawaoka explains. "We are watching this virus turn itself into a human pathogen."

The mutations found by Kawaoka's group have not yet conferred a complete ability on avian flu to easily recognize the topography of human cells, but they are key steps on that pathway. More mutations, says Kawaoka, will be required for the virus to fully adapt to humans, but it is not known how many mutations are needed for such a change.

However, if scientists are able to continue to monitor and secure viral isolates from humans infected with bird flu, they may be able to map a mutation trajectory that will help predict when the avian virus will cross the threshold to become a human pathogen.

The last two flu pandemics in 1957 and 1968 were caused by avian viruses that had accumulated enough genetic mutations to be considered hybrids of animal and human viruses, Kawaoka notes.

The new work was supported by grants from the Japan Science and Technology Agency; the Japan Ministry of Education, Culture, Sports, Science and Technology; the Japan Ministry of Health Labor and Welfare; and the U.S. National Institutes of Health.

Feedback, questions or accessibility issues: comments@uc.wisc.edu
Copyright

© 2005 Board of Regents of the University of Wisconsin System

Something I had not thought about

2006-11-14T14:54:00.000-08:00

GSK predicts unrest if bird-flu mutates

By Katherine Griffiths, City Correspondent
Last Updated: 11:16pm GMT 12/11/2006

# Profile: Visionary in the pursuit of excellence

Several governments around the world have promised to send in the army to protect GlaxoSmithKline manufacturing plants that produce bird flu vaccine should a pandemic break out, the drug maker's chief executive, Jean-Pierre Garnier, has said.

"People don't realise the disorder which comes from a scary event such as a true pandemic. It is not going to be the time to line up to your friendly pharmacist because there will be hundreds of people there. There will be panic episodes," Mr Garnier said.
advertisement

The Government is expected to make a decision in the next few weeks on what measures to take to protect the UK should bird flu mutate so that it can be passed from human to human, creating a global pandemic. As well as stocking up on antibiotics and face masks to reduce the risk of infection, the Department of Health is also expected to build a reserve of bird-flu vaccine.

GSK is one of several major pharmaceutical companies working on a vaccine against H5N1, the current strain of bird flu. It has signed a deal to supply its vaccine to Switzerland and an unnamed Asian country. It is in talks with other countries including the UK and US.

"We're hopeful the UK will come to a decision before the end of the year because other countries are knocking on our door," Mr Garnier said.

He said GSK could switch some of its factories making normal flu vaccine to the bird-flu drug. GSK has major flu drug plants in Germany and Canada. Mr Garnier said no countries had said they might requisition GSK factories in the event of a pandemic.

Check out the new OSHA guidelines for avian flu

2006-11-14T14:44:00.000-08:00

November, 14 2006
OSHA Unveils Avian Flu Guidance
By Josh Cable

OSHA today unveiled new safety and health guidance that alerts employees and employers about the hazards of occupational exposure to avian influenza from infected birds and provides practical recommendations on ways to avoid infection.

"We encourage employers and employees who are most likely to be exposed to avian flu to take the appropriate precautions," OSHA Administrator Ed Foulke Jr. said. "This guidance offers them practical tips, such as hand washing and the use of proper protective equipment, for preventing illness."

The new document – OSHA Guidance Update on Protecting Employees from Avian Flu Viruses – updates guidance on avian flu issued by OSHA in 2004.

The update provides separate recommendations for poultry employees and those who handle other animals, and for laboratory employees, health care personnel, food handlers, travelers and U.S. employees stationed abroad.

The primary focus is on good hygiene, including use of gloves and hand washing, as well as respiratory protection for those who work with infected animals or individuals, OSHA said.

The guidance also includes links to helpful Web sites with additional information, and a list of technical articles and resources, including a history on flu pandemics, symptoms and outcomes of various strains of the avian flu, a summary of the bird importation regulations and details on the transmission of the virus.

Avian Flu Could Be the Next Flu Pandemic

Wild birds, particularly waterfowl, are natural hosts of avian flu viruses and often show no symptoms; however, some of the viruses can cause high mortality in poultry, including the H5N1 virus.

Some strains of avian flu viruses carried by these wild birds can infect domestic fowl and in turn can infect humans, causing fever, cough, sore throat, eye infections and muscle pain. Avian flu can also lead to pneumonia, acute respiratory distress, and other severe and life-threatening complications. The most common route of transmission to humans is by contact with contaminated poultry.

The federal government is providing funding, advice, support and up-to-date information to help Americans prepare for and prevent the spread of avian flu in this country. The world's public health community is concerned that a new avian flu subtype may acquire the capability of human-to-human transmission, and become an agent for the next flu pandemic.

Increasing concern over the possibility of a pandemic has led the World Health Organization to develop a Global Influenza Preparedness Plan, and the White House to issue its National Strategy for Pandemic Influenza.

OSHA Guidance Available on Agency's Web site

OSHA Guidance Update on Protecting Employees from Avian Flu Viruses, as well as other important information on the topic, is available in English and Spanish by visiting the In Focus section on the home page of OSHA's Web site or by clicking here.

For more information on federal activities on avian flu and pandemic flu, visit http://www.pandemicflu.gov.

Did western nations not help this country after the tsunami devastated it?

2006-11-14T14:38:00.000-08:00

Jakarta (ANTARA News) - The Indonesian Democratic Party of Struggle (PDIP) as an opposition party sees the planned visit of United States President George W Bush to Indonesia on November 20 as merely a friendly visit of benefit only to the United States, a party spokesman said.

"There is nothing substantive or important to be gained from the visit. It is the United States that will benefit from it," PDIP Secretary General Pramono Anung said here on Tuesday.

Pramono said initially the PDIP saw no problem in the planned Bush visit but when the US asked for extra tight security and exaggerated facilities which led some parts of the Bogor Botanical Gardens to sustain damage, the party was now thinking Bush`s visit was an extravagance.

Pramono made the remarks after attending a dialog on the Law on the 2009 Election System and creation of quality democracy here on Tuesday.

He noted that just to welcome Bush, the government had built a helipad using expensive steel plates which were disturbing the ecology of the plant life being conserved in the Bogor Botanical Gardens.

"Indonesia should have shown its identity as a sovereign country and refused to be treated like that. It is as if Indonesia is a colony and we cannot accept this," he said.

On the occasion, Gajah Mada University political observer I Ketut Putra Erawan also questioned the purpose of the United States president`s planned visit.

"What is the benefit of the visit? Is there any benefit Indonesia will gain from it", Ketut asked , adding that public opposition to the visit was understandable.

Bush will visit Indonesia after attending an APEC meeting in Vietnam on November 20. The visit would be a return visit to the one made by President Susilo Bambang Yudhoyono to the United States in May, 2005.

Talks during the Bush visit are expected to focus on six topics, namely Indonesia`s desire to attract more US investment, cooperation in biofuel development, education, the fight against bird flu, natural disaster handling and information technology. (*)

Copyright © 2006 ANTARA

I know this says "M" chip, but I keep thinking MC CHIP

2006-11-14T14:22:00.000-08:00

Scientists from the University of Colorado at Boulder and the Centers for Disease Control and Prevention (CDC) have developed an inexpensive “gene chip” test based on a single influenza virus gene that could allow scientists to quickly identify flu viruses, including avian influenza H5N1. The researchers used the MChip to detect H5N1 in samples collected over a three-year period from people and animals in geographically diverse locales. In tests on 24 H5N1 viral isolates, the chip provided complete information about virus type and subtype in 21 cases and gave no false positive results, report the scientists. They say the MChip could provide a significant advantage over available tests because it is based on a single gene segment that mutates less often than the flu genes typically used in diagnostic tests. As a result, the MChip may not need to be updated as frequently to keep up with the changing virus.

The research was led by University of Colorado scientist Kathy L. Rowlen, Ph.D., and funded by the National Institute of Allergy and Infectious Diseases (NIAID), part of the National Institutes of Health. A paper describing the work, now available online, is scheduled to appear in the December 15 issue of the American Chemical Society’s journal Analytical Chemistry.

“Concerns about a possible influenza pandemic make it imperative that we continue to devise reliable and easy-to-use diagnostic tests for H5N1 that can be employed on-site where outbreaks are suspected,” says NIAID Director Anthony S. Fauci, M.D. “The MChip developed by Dr. Rowlen and her colleagues performed extremely well in initial tests and has the potential to be a valuable tool in global influenza surveillance efforts.”

The MChip has several advantages over the FluChip, a flu diagnostic previously developed by the same research team, says Dr. Rowlen. While the FluChip is based on three influenza genes — hemagglutinin (HA), neuraminidase (NA) and matrix (M) — the MChip is based on one gene segment. Unlike HA and NA, which mutate constantly and thus are technically difficult to use to develop gene chip diagnostic tests, the M gene segment mutates much less rapidly, Dr. Rowlen explains. “The M gene segment is much less of a moving target than the HA or NA gene. We believe that a test based on this relatively unchanging gene segment will be more robust because it will continue to provide accurate results even as the HA and NA genes mutate over time. The work summarized in our paper strongly supports that idea,” she says.

Another potential advantage is that the MChip would, for the first time, create a way to simultaneously screen large numbers of flu samples to learn both the type and subtype of virus present. Current real-time tests provide information about the type of virus (type A or B) in a sample, but additional tests must be run to determine the virus subtype (for example, H5N1 subtype.)

Working in biosafety-level-3-enhanced labs in Atlanta, CDC scientists, including Catherine B. Smith, M.S., extracted H5N1 genetic material from virus samples derived from human, feline and multiple avian hosts, including geese, chickens and ducks. The samples represented infections that had occurred between 2003 and 2006 over a vast geographic area, including Vietnam, Nigeria, Indonesia and Kazakhstan. Six of the human viral isolates were taken from an Indonesian family in which human-to-human H5N1 virus transmission was suspected. The virus diversity in the samples is important, explains Dr. Rowlen, because any diagnostic tool designed for eventual use on a rapidly changing virus, such as H5N1, must be able to detect as many variants as possible.

Dr. Rowlen and her colleagues tested the ability of the MChip to correctly identify 24 different H5N1 viral isolates, and distinguish those from seven non-H5N1 isolates. The MChip accurately identified and gave complete subtype information (identifying the samples as H5N1) for the 21 out of 24 strains of H5N1. Importantly, notes Dr. Rowlen, the test gave no false positives, meaning that the chip never indicated the presence of H5N1 when none was present. Following exposure to a viral isolate, the MChip displays results as a pattern of fluorescent spots. To automate the process of interpreting this pattern — thus eliminating the possibility of human error — the researchers developed an artificial neural network trained to recognize the distinctive pattern indicative of H5N1. Automating the interpretation of MChip results could allow it to be used more readily by health workers at the site of possible flu outbreaks, notes Dr. Rowlen.

“This new technology, once manufactured and distributed, could have the potential to revolutionize the way laboratories test for influenza,” says Nancy J. Cox, Ph.D., director of the CDC’s influenza division. “The MChip could enable more scientists and physicians, possibly even those working in remote places, to more quickly test for H5N1 and to accurately identify the specific strain and its features. This would greatly increase our ability to learn more about the viruses causing illness and take the best steps to respond.”

The raw materials for the MChip cost less than 10 dollars, Dr. Rowlen says, and discussions are under way to commercialize its manufacture.

For more information on influenza see http://www3.niaid.nih.gov/news/focuson/flu. Also visit http://www.PandemicFlu.gov for one-stop access to U.S. Government information on avian and pandemic flu.

Another meeting in Asia

2006-11-14T12:52:00.000-08:00

Control Of Avian Flu Among Issues For 28th AMAF Discussions

SINGAPORE, Nov 13 (Bernama) -- Asean ministers in charge of agriculture and forestry will meet in Singapore on Thursday to discuss various issues including the progress achieved in the control of avian influenza.

The meeting would update on the progress of avian influenza control measures in Asean countries, Singapore's Ministry of National Development (MND) said in a statement.

The 28th Meeting of the Asean Ministers of Agriculture and Forestry (AMAF) will be preceded by a senior officials meeting from today to Wednesday.

At the 27th AMAF meeting last year in the Philippines, the 10-member grouping endorsed a Regional Framework for Control and Eradication of Highly Pathogenic Avian Influenza (HPAI), covering eight strategic areas on the prevention, control and eradication of HPAI over a period of three years (2006 to 2008) under the coordination of assigned member countries.

Malaysia is assigned to coordinate implementation of containment measures, establishment of disease-free zones and emergency preparedness plan, while information sharing goes to Singapore; vaccination policy (Indonesia); disease surveillance and diagnostic capabilities (Thailand) and public awareness (the Philippines).

According to the Asean Secretariat, as of April this year, there had been 192 cases of human infections and over 200 million poultry lost, either they died because of the avian influenza (AI) or culled across the globe.

"Of the 192 human cases, 109 died. Out of these fatalities, 66 were in two of the Asean member countries -- 24 in Indonesia and 42 in Vietnam," the secretariat said.

Other issues on the agenda for the 28th AMAF meeting are collaboration on food safety, facilitating trade of agricultural products as well as implementation of animal health and regional fishery programmes.

The Asean ministers will also meet their counterparts from China, Japan and South Korea at the 6th AMAF plus 3 Meeting on Friday.

Among others, the 6th AMAF plus 3 Meeting will discuss ways to strengthen research, promote agri-trade, and facilitate training and technical co-operation.

Malaysia will be represented by Deputy Minister of Agriculture and Agro-based Industries, Datuk Mah Siew Keong.

-- BERNAMA

Learning in Delaware

2006-11-14T12:49:00.000-08:00

Romanians visit Del. to learn from bird flu experts
By LULADEY B. TADESSE, The News Journal
Posted Monday, November 13, 2006 at 11:40 am

Fifteen senior policymakers from Romania are visiting Delaware this week to participate in a nine-day training program on managing avian influenza outbreaks.

The Romanian group, which includes representatives from the government, poultry industry and academia, will spend most of its time with avian flu experts from the University of Delaware and Delaware Technical & Community College campuses in Georgetown.

In May, Romanian veterinarian authorities confirmed more than 80 outbreaks of the H5N1 virus infection in domestic fowl in 12 districts of the country, according to the World Health Organization. So far, no human cases have been confirmed, but Romanian officials are requesting assistance in controlling the disease.

UD and DelTech have formed the Delmarva International Poultry Partnership, which is focused on providing technical assistance to members of the international community faced with bird flu. Delaware is recognized worldwide for its expertise in bird flu prevention after its successful control of an outbreak in 2004.

The U.S. Department of Agriculture has awarded UD and Del Tech a total of $424,000 for the Romanian project.

In the past, other groups from abroad, including one from Kosovo, have come to Delaware to learn about bird flu prevention.

The Romanian delegation will be in Sussex County through Nov. 20.
Contact Luladey B. Tadesse at 324-2789 or ltadesse@delawareonline.com.