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• Bird (Avian) Flu
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Bird (Avian) Flu

Influenza A (H5N1) virus - also called H5N1 virus - is an influenza A virus subtype that occurs mainly in birds, is highly contagious among birds, and can be deadly to them. Outbreaks of avian influenza H5N1 occurred among poultry in eight countries in Asia (Cambodia , China, Indonesia, Japan, Laos, South Korea, Thailand, and Vietnam) during late 2003 and early 2004. At that time, more than 100 million birds in the affected countries either died from the disease or were killed in order to try to control the outbreaks. By March 2004, the outbreak was reported to be under control.

Since late June 2004, however, new outbreaks of influenza H5N1 among poultry have been reported by several countries in Asia (Cambodia, China, Indonesia, Kazakhstan, Malaysia, Mongolia, Russia, Thailand, and Vietnam). It is believed that these outbreaks are ongoing. Influenza H5N1 infection also has been reported among poultry in Turkey and Romania and among wild migratory birds in Croatia .

Human cases of influenza A (H5N1) infection have been reported in Cambodia, China, Indonesia, Thailand, and Vietnam. For the most current information about avian influenza and cumulative case numbers, see the World Health Organization website at http://www.who.int/csr/disease/avian_influenza/en/.

H5N1 virus does not usually infect people, but more than 100 human cases have been reported. Most of these cases have occurred from direct or close contact with infected poultry or contaminated surfaces. However, a few cases of human-to-human spread of H5N1 virus have occurred.

So far, spread of H5N1 virus from person to person has been rare and has not continued beyond one person. Nonetheless, because all influenza viruses have the ability to change, the H5N1 virus could be able to infect humans and spread easily from one person to another. Because these viruses do not commonly infect humans, there is little or no immune protection against them in the human population.

If H5N1 virus were to gain the capacity to spread easily from person to person, an influenza pandemic could begin. No one can predict when a pandemic might occur. However, many scientists are watching the H5N1 situation in Asia and Europe very closely and are preparing for the possibility that the virus may begin to spread more easily from person to person.

The current flu vaccine will not necessarily protect against avian flu but nevertheless, uptake of flu vaccination in 2005 was much higher than normal and supplies ran short. A number of vaccine manufacturers are attempting to produce products that will definitely protect against this strain but no vaccines are commercially available as yet.

Further reading

http://news.bbc.co.uk/1/hi/in_depth/world/2005/bird_flu/default.stm 
http://www.dh.gov.uk/assetRoot/04/12/17/38/04121738.pdf (patient information leaflet from the Department of Health)