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The Director General of the World Health Organization last week referred to avian influenza (bird flu) as the "most serious known health threat the world is facing today." Dr. Lee Jong-wook made the statement as he concluded his opening remarks to the 58th World Health Assembly in Geneva, Switzerland last Monday. The Assembly ended today after adopting revised International Health Regulations that govern national and international response to disease outbreaks. "The timing cannot be predicted, but rapid international spread is certain once the pandemic virus appears," Jong-wook said about avian influenza. "This is a grave danger for all people in all countries.
"We can get some idea of its magnitude from the Spanish flu pandemic in 1918, which killed between 20 and 50 million people. At that time public health and medical scientists had very little idea of what was happening until it was too late. By good fortune we have had time - and still have time - to prepare for the next global pandemic, because the conditions for it have appeared before the outbreak itself. "We must do everything in our power to maximize that preparedness. When this event occurs, our response has got to be immediate, comprehensive and effective," Jong-wook said. The Assembly underlined the importance of influenza pandemic preparedness and response by adopting a resolution calling on all member states to develop and implement national plans for pandemic-influenza preparedness and response that focus on limiting the health impact and economic and social disruption. In 2003 and early 2004, outbreaks of influenza H5N1, a virulent strain, occurred in poultry in eight Asian countries: Cambodia; China; Indonesia; Japan; Laos; South Korea; Thailand; and Vietnam. More than 100 million birds either died from the disease or were killed in an attempt to control the outbreak, according to the Centers for Disease Control (CDC). Beginning in late June 2004, new deadly outbreaks of influenza H5N1 among poultry were reported by several countries in Asia. CDC says these outbreaks are believed to be ongoing. Human infections of influenza A (H5N1) have been reported in Thailand, Vietnam and Cambodia. CDC says that so far, spread of H5N1 virus from person to person has been rare and spread has not continued beyond one person. The World Health Organization last week noted 97 human cases of the illness have occurred, resulting in 53 deaths. The majority of cases took place in Vietnam. But CDC notes that because all influenza viruses have the ability to change, scientists are concerned the H5N1 virus could one day be able to infect humans and spread easily from one person to another. If the H5N1 virus were able to infect people and spread easily from person to person, an "influenza pandemic" could begin, they say. In February 2004, flocks of chickens in Delaware were confirmed to have avian influenza. Pockets of the illness were also found in New Jersey, Pennsylvania, Texas, Maryland, Virginia, Rhode Island and Connecticut. The infected birds in this outbreak had a different strain from that found in Asia, H7N2, which has never been known to cause harm to humans. Learn more about avian influenza at the CDC Web site here: http://www.cdc.gov/flu/avian/ |
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