BIRD FLU

DOC I HAVE BIRD FLU

Bird Flu or more correctly, avian flu is new strain of influenza virus H5N1 which can infect humans.

It has been around for 1987 and was expected to be the next big pandemic to hit the world.

Millions of birds and poultry has been culled all these countries especially in Thailand and China.

Just in December 2011 there has been a few cases found in Hong Kong where culling of poultry has been done .

The number of cases of avian flu in humans in the current outbreak is very small, and almost all have come about by direct contact with infected or dead birds or poultry.

The first outbreak of bird flu occurred in 1987 . Since then the bird flu have claimed at least 306 human lives in Azerbaijan, Cambodia, China, Egypt, Indonesia, Iraq, Laos, Nigeria, Pakistan, Thailand, Turkey, and Vietnam.

Just as recent as December 2011 one woman in Shenzhen which is in southern China died of bird flu(H5N1).

On January 7th 2012 another person also died of Bird flu in Indonesia.

Central to the problem of dealing with bird flu is diagnosis.
A number of upper respiratory infections have similar symptoms—at least at the onset of the illness, including the common cold, seasonal influenza, and bird flu.

Seasonal flu and bird flu have almost identical symptoms:
1.fever,
2.cough,
3.malaise (feeling unwell),
4.nausea,
5.vomiting,
6.diarrhea.

The Multiplexed Respiratory Test, discriminates influenza A from influenza B and identifies the H5-subtype of influenza A (bird flu is “H5N1”) from all other H subtypes.
In addition, it can identify almost all the other common—and some uncommon—viruses that cause influenza-like illnesses.

Preparation to treat a bird flu epidemic:
1. The single most important thing for an epidemic such as avian bird flu is to have well-prepared local health care systems.

2. Regular hand washing, and other beneficial cleanliness custom may save more lives than all other medicines combined.

3. The proper recognition and prizes should be given to those who have come up with effective vaccines for the avian bird flu disease. On the same note, vaccine makers should be given the freedom to make use of state materials needed for the vaccines.

4. Relevant drugs and vaccines for the avian bird flu disease should be bought and sold at fair prices.

5. Make preparations to ensure the continuity of food and power supplies.

6. It is therefore appropriate to have local health authorities ready to be used when the situation calls for it.

7. Encourage the formation of prediction markets about the avian bird flu epidemic.

8. There should be useful information about the progress of avian flu.

This will be especially useful in some Asian countries where the avian bird flu epidemic is expected to be rampant.

9. The World Health Organization should be prepared for such a bird flu epidemic.

During an avian bird flu epidemic, there are also things that should not be done:
1. Tamiflu and vaccine stockpiling have their useful roles.

In addition to the medical limitations of these investments(Tamiflu is losing its effect on most influenza because of their frequent use especially in Hong Kong), other institutional factors, such as transportation, will restrict the ability to allocate these supplies promptly to the persons needing them(healthcare and emergency staff)

2. Quarantines and mass isolations are useless in a bird flu epidemic.

3. In an avian bird flu epidemic  the health authorities must be in full control of the situation

4. It is pointless to block off or isolate the pandemic in its country of origin.It may have spread abroad already. Besides birds are migratory.

5.Public places such as schools and marketplaces should be closed immediately to be on the safe side.

5. People should not obsess over avian bird flu at the expense of other medical issues.