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CDC: Avian Influenza Resource Updates

 

 


# 5993

 

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H5N1 Virus – Source CDC PHIL 

 

I’m happy to report that the CDC has updated and/or added a number of avian flu related web pages this week. These resources provide excellent background information along with current thought on the threats posed by avian influenza in birds, humans, and other animals. 

 

After the links, you’ll find an excerpt from the CDC’s risk assessment of the H5N1 avian flu virus.

 

As you’ll see, concerns over it’s adaptation to humans have not diminished.

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

As far as the future of avian flu, and the threat it poses to public health, here is what the CDC has to say:

 

 

Assessment of Public Health Threat

 

As the highly pathogenic avian influenza A (H5N1) epizootic (animal outbreak) is not expected to diminish significantly in the short term, sporadic human infections with H5N1 virus, resulting from direct or close contact with infected sick or dead poultry, are expected to continue to occur, including fatal cases. So far, the spread of H5N1 virus from person-to-person has been very rare, limited, and not sustained.

 

To date, there is no evidence of genetic reassortment between human influenza A and H5N1 viruses. However, influenza A viruses circulating among poultry have the potential to recombine with human influenza A viruses.

 

Therefore, this H5N1 epizootic continues to pose an important public health threat. There is little pre-existing natural immunity to H5N1 virus infection in the human population. If H5N1 viruses gain the ability for efficient and sustained transmission among humans, an influenza pandemic could result, with potentially high rates of illness and death worldwide.

 

Human infection with novel or nonhuman influenza A viruses, including influenza A viruses of animal origin, is a nationally notifiable disease in the United States. Human infections with nonhuman or novel human influenza A virus should be identified quickly and investigated to determine possible sources of exposure, identify additional cases, and to evaluate the possibility of human-to-human transmission.

 

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