British Officials Warn of Flu Pandemic
Posted on: Sunday, 28 August 2005, 18:00 CDT
Health officials in Britain are stockpiling anti-viral drugs, fearing a strain of bird flu could enter Europe and mutate into a deadly, contagious form.
The flu, called H5N1, was originally found in Chinese animals, eventually killing tens of millions, the Sunday Times of London Reports. Thus far, the disease has infected 120 people and killed about half of those.
The fear is the virus could transform into a transmissible form, bringing comparisons to the 1918 flu epidemic that killed 50 million people worldwide.
In Britain, officials are taking the threat very seriously, spending over $180 million for 14.6 million treatments of Tamiflu. The drug is thought to be the only known vaccine for the virus.
Saturday, a human case of H5N1 was reported in Finland, and earlier in August cases were found in Russian patients. The strains of the flu cases were not specified.
Dr. Nigel Higson, chairman of the primary care virology group, said that although there is no indication H5N1 is contagious through air, he expects it to become pandemic.
If we do get human-to-human transmission, millions will die, he said.
Source: United Press International
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