• E-mail
• Print
• Comment
• Font Size
• Digg
• del.icio.us
• Discuss article

Dangers of Bird Flu and How It Spreads

Posted on: Friday, 26 August 2005, 09:01 CDT

What is bird flu? Avian influenza H5N1 - or bird flu - is a naturally occurring virus in birds which is highly contagious and can kill them. It is carried in their intestines and can affect chickens and water fowl such as ducks and turkeys. Does it affect humans? Although most bird flu does not affect humans, some strains do. The concern is that if the virus mutates from human to human instead of bird to human, it could cause a devastating pandemic. How is it spread? The virus is passed from infected birds through their saliva and faeces. Humans are likely to contract the disease after close contact with infected birds, most likely poultry.

What are the symptoms in humans? They include flu-like fever, coughs, sore throats and muscle ache as well as more serious conditions of eye infections, pneumonia and severe respiratory diseases.

What is the best treatment? Vaccines to prevent the virus spreading to humans are under development.

Recently, pharmaceutical giant Roche donated 30 million doses of drugs to help combat a flu pandemic to the World Health Organisation Where did the current scare originate It is thought to have started in China and spread throughout Asia, particularly affecting poultry. Cambodia, China, Indonesia, Japan, Laos, South Korea, Thailand, and Vietnam were all affected during late 2003 and 2004. The virus has spread to Russia and it is feared it will shortly reach the UK via migrating birds

Source: Daily Post; Liverpool

More News in this Category