UN: More Bird Flu Outbreaks Expected

Wolf · #1 02-04-07, 05:08 PM

Quote:

JAKARTA, INDONESIA - The world should expect more bird flu outbreaks in the coming months, the U.N. official coordinating the global fight against the virus warned Sunday after Britain recorded its first case of the H5N1 strain on a commercial farm.

Dr. David Nabarro said, however, that he did not expect the virus to spread in Britain to neighboring farms because of the quick containment measures put in place by the government.

"This should mean that there won't therefore be spread ... into other parts in the vicinity," he told The Associated Press in Indonesia, the country worst hit by the virus. "That is what I hope, but of course we will see over the next few days."

He said countries around the world where the virus was not endemic would likely see more cases in poultry before June, mostly spread by migrating birds.

"I am expecting to see outbreaks of highly pathogenic avian influenza in a number of locations over the next three or four months, and I am basing it on what happened last year," he said, stressing that the risk to human health remained very small.

Nabarro said a recent spike in human deaths in Indonesia meant the country must do more to fight the virus despite improving its efforts in recent months, including the slaughter of backyard chickens in the capital last week.

"Just at the moment there are rather a lot of (cases) ... so that is why everybody needs to be a little anxious about what is happening and everybody needs to be forceful on moving rapidly and strongly forward with intensifying measures."

H5N1 has prompted the slaughter of millions of birds across Asia since late 2003 and caused the deaths of more than 160 people worldwide, around a third of them in Indonesia, according to the World Health Organization.

Most people killed so far have been infected by domestic fowl and the virus remains very hard for humans to catch. But experts fear it could mutate into a form that easily spreads among humans, sparking a pandemic with the potential to kill millions.

Hopefully it doesn't mutate to cause the giant pandemic of the 21st century... AIDS is already bad enough... and Bird Flu has potential to be even BIGGER... possibly killing BILLIONS.

Joad · #2 02-04-07, 05:10 PM

God help us that it doesnt reach America.

Wolf · #3 02-04-07, 05:12 PM

Oh... I'm willing to bet my life that it will reach America in a year or 2... We can't deny the fact that these things are reality and that they WILL happen sooner or later. People don't have control over everything, something will always manage to slip away and explode somewhere else.

Joad · #4 02-04-07, 05:14 PM

Wow, both me and you bet our lives on things, its cool. But i agree, with all that outgoing/imcoming means of transportation, its inevitable. We can hope that we find a vaccine for it, though.

Wolf · #5 02-04-07, 05:30 PM

Quote:

Originally Posted by Joad

Wow, both me and you bet our lives on things, its cool. But i agree, with all that outgoing/imcoming means of transportation, its inevitable. We can hope that we find a vaccine for it, though.

There's always that possibility, but we have yet to find a vaccine for HIV/AIDS.

Joad · #6 02-04-07, 05:31 PM

Heehee, finding the cure for AIDS is totally different from finding a vaccine for the flu, but hey! That humongous difference may be irrelevant if we dont put our time into it.

Wolf · #7 02-04-07, 05:35 PM

Both are viruses though, and humans have yet to find a cure for ANY virus... Finding a cure for one virus could cause every virus to be curable!

Joad · #8 02-04-07, 05:39 PM

Heehee, you forget the effect of HIV/AIDS, i see. Mind if I explain?

HIv destroys the immune system, it's a disease, not a virus. Hiv creates Aids, the virus, and just like all viruses, aids does the same thing to antibodies: rewrites the codes and produces mor eof the virus. Making a vaccine on the thing is suicidal. I'm assuming you know what a vaccine is, so then i wont explain that. Take into consideration of how both viruses spread as well. I think bird flu will be much easier to find a vaccine for than AIDS, so we won't need to worry that we will never find one!

AJ · #9 02-04-07, 05:44 PM

Quote:

Originally Posted by Joad

Heehee, you forget the effect of HIV/AIDS, i see. Mind if I explain?

HIv destroys the immune system, it's a disease, not a virus. Hiv creates Aids, the virus, and just like all viruses, aids does the same thing to antibodies: rewrites the codes and produces mor eof the virus. Making a vaccine on the thing is suicidal. I'm assuming you know what a vaccine is, so then i wont explain that. Take into consideration of how both viruses spread as well. I think bird flu will be much easier to find a vaccine for than AIDS, so we won't need to worry that we will never find one!

Exactly.......

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