Tracking the next pandemic: Avian Flu Talk |
"India declares itself bird flu free" |
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Posted: August 12 2006 at 12:15pm |
India declares itself bird-flu free
AFP
Saturday, August 12, 2006 20:50 ISTNEW DELHI: India announced on Saturday it was free of bird flu, six months after the country first reported an outbreak of the deadly virus. "India has declared that it has regained its status as an avian influenza-free country," the Indian health ministry said in a statement. "There has been no further outbreak of avian influenza in India after 18 April." India's animal husbandry department has sent its report on the country's bird-flu status to the World Organization of Animal Health, the statement said. The disease was first confirmed in chickens in western India in February, leading to the culling of more than a million birds by health authorities. According to the Paris-based animal organization's health code, a country can regain bird flu-free status if no new cases are reported for three months after an outbreak has been stamped out, provided proper surveillance is in place. India promised in its statement to continue to monitor for bird flu cases. "Surveillance will continue in the country as a whole, especially in the outbreak areas, areas of major poultry concentration and those visited by migratory birds," it said. The ministry said more than 60,000 birds have been tested for the disease since the February outbreak in the country of more than one billion people where many live in close proximity to poultry. No human cases of bird flu have been reported in India. The virus
has so far killed 138 people worldwide, fewer than other types of flu,
but experts fear the highly-lethal H5N1 strain could mutate to become
transmissible between people and trigger a human pandemic. *** *** *** I guess I've become cynical because I'm not reassured. |
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Fiddlerdave3
Valued Member Joined: August 09 2006 Status: Offline Points: 32 |
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Well, since Niman is reporting that the source for the H5N1 infecting humans does not appear to be from birds, their birds being healthy may not be of any reassurance at all.
And in any event, "no reported cases" is becoming a very popular position in many countries.
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This has much more the feel of an economic statement than a medical one. Whenever you have the sheer numbers and concentrations of population you have in India, it is unlikely you don't have a comparitive % of the gambit of human diseases.
India has been a hotspot for Avian, with one of the first jumps from the very virulent form from China a considerabe distance away. These type announcements always tend to procede outbreaks. I have not figured out the correlation yet, but as soon as Vietnam announced it was Avian free, or not long afer then there were more problems. It is almost like a sticker you might put on a turkey in the supermarket - "Avian free." When you see "new no fat" (contains artificial fat flavor), "no sugar" (contains some new chemical) - point being, I'm not holding my breath. India will probably be one of the worst hit countries in the coming Pandemic. Not if...really not if. |
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Have you ever been to India?? How can they make such a statement?
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Oisanatta
V.I.P. Member Joined: May 08 2006 Location: United States Status: Offline Points: 308 |
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maybe India meant "bird-free" because all of their birds are dead from the BF.
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The only thing worse than a brutal lie is the brutal truth. (M Twain) I waited patiently for the LORD; He turned to me and heard my cry. He lifted me out of the pit; He set my feet on a rock. Psalm40
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good one, oisanatta - or maybe they're just not answering the phones at the health department. |
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Thanks for the laugh !
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