Deadly Bird Flu in China......
the new H7N9 avian influenza in China are surging alarmingly, flu experts warned this week.
There are now about 300 confirmed cases, with more appearing every day. Roughly a quarter of the victims have died.
The first human cases were reported only last March. By contrast, the H5N1 influenza virus, another lethal strain that jumped from birds to people, first appeared in 2003 and took almost five years to reach the 300-case mark.
“H7N9 is blowing right by H5N1,” said Michael T. Osterholm, director of the Center for Infectious Disease Research and Policy at the University of Minnesota. “I’m really worried about that.”
H7N9 virus had infected people in 10 Chinese provinces and was close to the borders of Vietnam, Cambodia and other poor Southeast Asian nations less adept than China at flu surveillance.
Birds appear to be spreading the H7N9 virus more through their breath than through feces, the normal infection route, Dr. Osterholm said, which means that fecal-sample testing in live markets may miss cases.
Monitoring the spread of the H7N9 and H10N8 viruses is difficult because neither makes chickens sick. Poultry farmers resist testing because a positive test forces them to destroy flocks that appear healthy.
Although human-to-human transmission of the H7N9 virus has not been confirmed, there have been clusters of two or three cases within families.
http://www.nytimes.com/2014/02/05/health/cases-of-new-deadly-bird-flu-surge-in-china-experts-say.html?hpw&rref=science&_r=0
There are now about 300 confirmed cases, with more appearing every day. Roughly a quarter of the victims have died.
The first human cases were reported only last March. By contrast, the H5N1 influenza virus, another lethal strain that jumped from birds to people, first appeared in 2003 and took almost five years to reach the 300-case mark.
“H7N9 is blowing right by H5N1,” said Michael T. Osterholm, director of the Center for Infectious Disease Research and Policy at the University of Minnesota. “I’m really worried about that.”
H7N9 virus had infected people in 10 Chinese provinces and was close to the borders of Vietnam, Cambodia and other poor Southeast Asian nations less adept than China at flu surveillance.
Birds appear to be spreading the H7N9 virus more through their breath than through feces, the normal infection route, Dr. Osterholm said, which means that fecal-sample testing in live markets may miss cases.
Monitoring the spread of the H7N9 and H10N8 viruses is difficult because neither makes chickens sick. Poultry farmers resist testing because a positive test forces them to destroy flocks that appear healthy.
Although human-to-human transmission of the H7N9 virus has not been confirmed, there have been clusters of two or three cases within families.
http://www.nytimes.com/2014/02/05/health/cases-of-new-deadly-bird-flu-surge-in-china-experts-say.html?hpw&rref=science&_r=0
posted by res17 at
February 05, 2014
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