Figures on flu deaths are misleading, usually too high, CDC says

August 27, 2010|By Thomas H. Maugh II, Los Angeles Times

Most reports about seasonal influenza cite an average of about 36,000 deaths in a typical season, but that number is too high and grossly misleading, the Centers for Disease Control and Prevention said Thursday.

-snip-

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The number of deaths in a given year depends on a variety of factors, including how long the flu season lasts, how many people get sick and who gets sick. But by far, the most important factor is the strain of flu that predominates in a given season.

When an H3N2 strain predominates, the number of deaths typically is about 2.7 times higher than in years when an H1N1 strain predominates. Researchers are not sure why that is, but it occurs at least in part because the H3N2 virus mutates more rapidly.

http://articles.latimes.com/2010/aug/27/science/la-sci-flu-deaths-20100827

Vietnam: H3N2: Flu season is more severe changes

13 hours ago

After influenza A/H1N1 subsides, a period of nearly five months, average daily central tropical disease hospital received only about 20-30 cases in the examination and treatment by influenza syndrome. But in about 10 days back, the flow of patients to examination and treatment of influenza in the central hospital of tropical diseases has increased sharply, the average day about 100 patients with influenza to health manifested as cough , high fever, acute respiratory long, runny nose, sore throat irritation ...

Talking to the press on 27-8, doctor Nguyen Hong Ha - Deputy Director of the Central Hospital for Tropical Diseases, said the test swabs of the majority of patients showed flu this time, cause influenza A/H3N2 virus is not H1N1 influenza pandemic. Indeed, influenza virus A/H3N2 influenza virus is common, still in circulation for many years and less dangerous. For those of healthy patients benign disease evolution, possibly after 3-5 days the fever, the expression fatigue, cough can last for 10 days or 2-3 weeks after the end itself. However, if untreated or treated too late, A/H3N2 flu can also cause dangerous complications leading to pneumonia, respiratory failure, even death, especially with patients with lower resistance as pregnant women, elderly, young children, people with heart disease, chronic pneumonia, immunodeficiency disease ...

Specifically, changes in the H3N2 flu this time appear in many cases heavy young age. Epidemiological investigation on patients showed that there are many cases where a family with flu infection. Mr. Ha stressed here is that time of seasonal flu spread so strong if not better preventive measures for themselves and the community, the risk of influenza A/H3N2 epidemic continues to spread is huge.

Because the flu season has many manifestations usually mild with very common symptoms such as fever, persistent cough for a few days so most of these patients actively buy antibiotics, but fever is rarely taken on themselves to basic medical examination. Dr. Nguyen Trung Grant, Faculty of examination-Central Tropical Diseases Hospital, the patient should not arbitrarily treat flu with antibiotics that should go to the medical facility for examination and guide appropriate treatment. Because antibiotics do not work with the flu virus itself, so the antibiotic treatment is not correct and will not help patients in remission. Furthermore, expression of flu are fever, cough, easily confused with other diseases, so if not diagnosed correctly was that their own patients treated with antibiotics as causing more severe disease progression as well as family increasing drug resistance.

Doctors Hospital Central Tropical Diseases said, by influenza virus transmission from patients released into the surrounding environment, increases in this period due to cold weather. To prevent influenza, people need to make good personal hygiene, wearing masks regularly to crowded places and contact with patients, to avoid crowds when the flu, should have a handkerchief or tissue Cover your mouth when coughing or sneezing ... Those early manifestation of the disease should seek medical facilities for examination and treatment.

Vietnam-27 provinces with PRRS

Blue ear epidemic spread in southern provinces


Destroying infected with blue ear pig in Kon Tum.
ND - Experimental vaccines for blue ear pig


According to the Department of Animal Health, currently there are 27 provinces of Nghe An, Cao Bang and Soc Trang, Tien Giang, Lao Cai, Long An, Binh Duong, Bac Lieu, Quang Nam, Dong Nai, Binh Phuoc, Da Nang, Vinh Long, Khanh Hoa, Dac Lac, Hau Giang, Lam Dong, Tay Ninh, Ba Ria-Vung Tau, An Giang, Dong Thap, Can Tho, Ben Tre, Kien Giang, Ca Mau, Kon Tum and Dac Nong has translated ear Green is not over 21 days. In particular, Dac Nong province emerging epidemic on 24-8. Before the blue ear epidemic situation has become more complex changes, to control and reduce services, Department of Animal Health is preparing to put into vaccine trials of new vaccines. There are vaccines for testing in the laboratory. If good results, last August and early September this year will implement vaccination in high risk areas. .. Dong Nai Province, where the largest herd, with nearly 1.4 million children are faced with the outbreak of blue ear epidemic strong. After announcing deals in Bau Kan (Long Thanh district), blue ear epidemic is spreading like wildfire...

Vietnam: Ninh Binh Province; Hoa Lu Health Center Prepardness

Hoa Lu Health Center: To promote the prevention and fight against epidemics
Posted: Tuesday, 12:33, 08/24/2010
Since June, the district has appeared three cases positive for swine streptococcus bacteria. Here are three patients in three different areas are: Van Ninh, Ninh Thang Thien Ton and towns, including two patients directly related to slaughter and eat pork.

As soon as information on disease situation, Hoa Lu Medical Center in collaboration with the Center for Preventive Medicine provincial officials to implement on the basis of the inspection, surveillance, chemical spraying organization Cloramin B substances at slaughter, food, places related to patients such as housing, around the garden, make a list and monitor the health of the people involved. Center has instructions for how health care facilities, processing techniques outbreak, reported income information as prescribed. Since then, the district has not appeared more cases of swine streptococcus do.
-snip-
The center has plans for prevention and treatment, close coordination with the commune health stations and townships in the district implemented the prevention and consolidation of the steering committee, assign specific responsibilities to each members, to promote propaganda on the radio three-level system, directing village health teams, strengthening the monitoring of the disease situation of the people, strengthening the prevention of food poisoning Products ... weekly report sent to the Centre.
-snip-
The center will be located in two rooms with four scientific Obtain beds to isolate patients when receiving services.

Adequate preparation of certain medicines, including chemicals, fluids, medicine ... Team officials under preventive medicine regularly coordinate with the commune health stations, township conduct inspection and supervision services disease. In the prevention of epidemics, the Center focuses on the former occurrence of outbreaks in previous years, such as food poisoning, acute diarrhea, influenza A (H5N1) virus, dengue fever ... to protect people's health area.

Warning risk of an outbreak of influenza A/H3N2

Saturday, 28/08/2010, 03:06 (GMT +7)
While influenza A/H1N1 was basically put under control the number of people with influenza A/H3N2 is growing strongly again. Although influenza is common but dangerous risk of complications and the spread of this pandemic is very high.

BS, MA, Nguyen Hong Ha, deputy director of the Hospital for Tropical Diseases, said the Central Government, the volume of patients to diagnose and treat influenza at a hospital in about a week ago were returned to Asia. On average 130-150 patients every day to check flu, nearly doubled compared with the past. Most patients have symptoms of the flu season, such as cough, high fever, acute respiratory long, body aches, muscle pain of osteoarthritis, watery eyes, runny nose, sore throat irritation.

Through the test swabs of patients showed a disease caused by influenza A/H3N2 virus. "This is a virus causes the flu season usually, not the influenza A/H1N1 virus ...", Dr Nguyen Hong Ha said.

However, Dr Nguyen Hong Ha stressed that although the flu this flu season but is at risk of epidemic spread over a larger and more dangerous complications. Because epidemiological survey showed most recently, Hanoi has many families with multiple diseases. Furthermore, influenza A/H3N2 has its risk factors such as H1N1 influenza complications capable of causing pneumonia and death.

Those with lower resistance, pregnant women, elderly, young children, people with heart disease, chronic lung, immune deficiency disease ... the subject is susceptible to complications of influenza A/H3N2 and risk Insurance

Previous influenza A/H3N2 situation tends to spread, BS, MA, Nguyen Hong Ha recommendations, influenza is a disease caused by influenza virus transmission from patients released into the surrounding environment or by contact. So when the flu should strictly implement the measures of personal hygiene, often to wear a mask when in crowded areas.

Moreover, when anyone signs of the flu in time to the hospital early this need to be diagnosed and treated promptly to avoid unfortunate complications. Do not buy and take antibiotics when signs of flu, which has no physical exam and doctor's instructions.

Vietnam: H3N2 Prevalence at Hosp. for Tropical Diseases Central

Influenza A (H3N2) can also be deadly

28/08/2010

Recently, the Hospital for Tropical Diseases Central received a lot of people to check with flu symptoms. Liệu có phải cúm A(H1N1) đại dịch đã quay trở lại? Whether influenza A (H1N1) pandemic has come back? Thạc sĩ Nguyễn Hồng Hà, Phó Giám đốc bệnh viện, cho biết: Master Nguyen Hong Ha, deputy hospital director, said:

- Trung bình mỗi ngày, có khoảng 130 bệnh nhân cúm đến khám với các biểu hiện như ho, sốt cao, viêm long đường hô hấp, đau nhức toàn thân, đau các cơ xương khớp, chân tay rã rời, chảy nước mắt, sổ mũi, ngạt mũi, đau rát họng... - A day on average, approximately 130 patients with influenza to check manifests as cough, high fever, acute respiratory long, body aches, muscle pain of osteoarthritis, tired limbs, watery eyes, Sneezing, stuffy nose, sore throat irritation ... Kết quả xét nghiệm bệnh phẩm khẳng định nguyên nhân gây bệnh là virus cúm A(H3N2), loại cúm mùa thông thường, chứ không phải cúm A(H1N1) đại dịch. The test swabs confirmed the virus causes influenza A (H3N2), influenza type regular season, not the influenza A (H1N1) pandemic. Tuy nhiên, điều tra dịch tễ cho thấy một số gia đình có nhiều người cùng mắc bệnh, nghĩa là dịch cúm này đã và đang có nguy cơ lây lan rộng hơn. However, epidemiological investigation showed that some families with multiple cases, this means that the pandemic has spread risk more broadly.
-snip-

Hau Giang: Dead Pigs Found in Channel - Spreads Pathogens

Dispose of the dead pigs into the river identified
27/08/2010, 06:23:54 PM
(Vfej.vn)-From the blue ear disease appears on the situation, about 20 days now in Hau Giang many households lack the sense of dead pigs were properly thrown into the river, canal water pollution and contribute to spread pathogens.

Department of Animal Health in Hau Giang Province with the local government has fished for nearly 50 identified dead pigs were thrown into the river to destroy, most on Xang Xa No canal, the section from Vi Thanh to Vi Thuy district. This is not the first time that avian influenza during the previous year, the veterinary sector has also picked and destroyed thousands of dead birds were thrown on the channel.


Mr. Truong Ngoc Trung, Department of Animal Health Department in Hau Giang Province, said: Although the Ministry of Agriculture and Rural Development has defined the case spread, spread animal pathogens will be dealt with severely, but not captured by the flagrant cases of pigs dead body thrown into the river and canals should not be handling cases.

Initially, veterinary science combined with local government to strengthen the propaganda to the people about the risk of spread of blue ear disease from which her step son had the good cooperation with local veterinary and to receive assistance. Also thanks to the propaganda push, throw away the exact situation recently dead pig down rivers have fallen more than before.


As known, until now the province of Hau Giang has 39 communes, wards and towns of 6 / 7 districts have blue ear epidemic occurs. Veterinary forces have carried out the destruction of 885 children, most of which is the town of Phung Hiep District and Nga Bay, each over 300 local children. Currently, the disease situation is marked slowdown and pork prices begin to move against the trend at new place

Pentagon Pulls $1B from WMD-Defense Efforts to Fund Vaccine Initiative

Friday, Aug. 27, 2010 By Elaine M. Grossman
Global Security Newswire


WASHINGTON -- The U.S. Defense Department has shifted more than $1 billion out of its nuclear, biological and chemical defense programs to underwrite a new White House priority on vaccine development and production to combat disease pandemics, according to government and industry officials (see GSN, Aug. 20).


The planned funding reduction "terminates essential CBRN [chemical, biological, radiological and nuclear] defense programs ... required to meet high priority service needs, prevent casualties and protect against CBRN incidents," according to a Pentagon budget document drafted in early August.


-snip-

"To implement the DOD response to the president's new [vaccine] initiative requires $1.07 billion" between fiscal 2012 and 2016, states the defense memo, obtained by Global Security Newswire.
The money was taken out of a wide variety of programs deemed "essential" for combating weapons of mass destruction, the document states. An additional $442 million was trimmed through efficiency reductions mandated by Defense Secretary Robert Gates, for a total of $1.5 billion cut from the counter-WMD account over the five-year period, according to the draft memo.

Egypt: H5N1 Bird Flu - 2010: 22 confirmed; 9 deaths

[This matches our list of confirmed cases for 2010; under Egypt Fact Box located in the right side bar]
Excerpt:

[27/08/2010]


Health announces the death of the 36 case of "bird flu"

And in 2010 saw the injury of 22 cases, 9 of whom died, while last year saw 39 cases of infection, of whom 4 died in Recent statistics issued by the World Health Organization has issued the world countries in Egypt in 2010 in the number of injuries and deaths compared to other countries.

Egypt: H5N1 Death (33 yo Qaliubiya)

Thursday, August 26th, 2010 - 13:23

Written by Amira Abdel-Salam

Ministry of Health announced today, Thursday, for the death of ninth case of bird flu during the year 2010, which is of a woman Qaliubiya old 33 years old.

It is noteworthy that since the issuance of the disease in 2006 cases amounted to 112 cases of infection, while reaching deaths to 36.

hat-tip AvianFluDiary

UAE: Discusses Developing Strategic Stockpile

24/08/2010
Excerpts:

"Food security" in the council headed by Dr. Sulaiman Al Jassim Fujairah
Speakers demanded a strategic stock of the state and fight the culture of consumption and waste

Participants discussed in the Council Ramadan, hosted by Dr. Sulaiman Al Jassim, Director of Zayed University in his house in Fujairah, the subject of food security and strategic motive in the current circumstances, where the speakers stressed the need to develop a strategic stockpile of the state is enough for at least 6 months, and the establishment of an organizational structure to manage the direction of the High Command It was suggested that cooperative societies constitute an effective mechanism for distribution during the crisis, demanding to open branches across the country, and pointed out that the food comes on top of the pyramid of strategic priorities, and drinking water, fuels, pharmaceuticals, and include foodstuffs, wheat, corn, barley, fruits and vegetables , dates, potatoes, onions, meat, fodder and vegetable oils. They said that the ports of the east coast are eligible for the storage of strategic goods in ships freely, and the establishment of silos in the plains.
-snip-
He pointed out that there is a study by researchers at the Department of Economic Development in Abu Dhabi warned against the lack of strategic stocks of basic food commodities in the country to face food crises ahead, and monopolistic practices in the local market at which the UAE on imports to secure 85 per cent of the total food needs. That the contribution of agricultural sector in the GDP declining year after year, and that there was the adoption of 100 per cent on the outside to cover the domestic consumption of food commodities, and the value of import of food commodities is a six-fold in terms of agricultural exports amounted to 4.29 billion dirhams in 2007 / 2008 .

He added that the diversification of import sources to Aihakq objectives in the context of pandemics such as bird flu, where it was to stop all imports from 28 countries, and suffered the public from an acute shortage of eggs and chicken prices had gone up significantly.
-snip-
He noted that a report of the Abu Dhabi Council for Economic Development called for building a strategic stockpile of food in the UAE, and diversify the sources of import, as the report pointed out that the crisis of rising prices in Abu Dhabi and reached levels in goods between 50 to 60 per cent, which led to increasing complaints the public from rising prices. The report also stated that the State is characterized by special circumstances that make it import absolute priority in achieving food security, as well as promotion of a modern agricultural sector is capable of production in the core subjects, according to the natural conditions of the list. The report predicted that the high value of food imports to 60 billion dirhams by 2011 compared to 3.52 billion dirhams, 2007.
-snip-

Vietnam: Appearance of avian influenza in chickens first 500 children

08/26/2010 06:58:08

While the blue ear pig is rampant in many localities, the new veterinary re-discovered bird flu outbreak in the province the first in Trung Ngai (Vung Liem).

Đàn gà 500 con của ông Nguyễn Thành Trung bị bệnh chết rải rác nhiều ngày trước, đến ngày 10/8 nhận được kết quả xét nghiệm bệnh phẩm dương tính với virus H5N1, lực lượng thú y tiến hành tiêu hủy toàn bộ đàn gà còn lại của ông Trung.

500 baby chickens of Nguyen Thanh Trung sick scattered dead several days ago, on 10 / 8 receiving the swabs tested positive for H5N1, veterinary forces conducted destroy all chickens also His re China [Trung].

Anh Hồ Công Nguyên- Trưởng Phòng Nông nghiệp và PTNT cho biết: Ngay sau khi tiêu hủy, lực lượng thú y đã tiến hành phun hóa chất, tiêu độc sát trùng nơi xảy ra ổ dịch và 2 ấp lân cận không để dịch bệnh lan rộng. Ho BC-British Chamber of Agriculture and Rural Development Manager, said: Immediately after the destruction, veterinary forces have carried out the chemical sprays, antiseptic disinfection where the outbreak occurred and two neighboring villages not to spread disease wide.

Được biết, toàn huyện Vũng Liêm có gần 72.000 con gia cầm các loại, trong đó gà trên 8.800 con và gần 63.000 con vịt, tất cả đều đã được tiêm phòng vaccine đợt 2. As known, Vung Liem district has nearly 72,000 poultry of all kinds, including chickens and nearly 63,000 children over 8800 ducks, all of which have been vaccinated vaccine batch 2.

L.SƠN- H.MINH

Illness forces N.C. shelter to close, 200 animals to be euthanized

Approximately 200 animals will be euthanized, and the Catawba County Animal Shelter will be temporarily closed because of the outbreak of an unidentified illness.

The animals, which shelter officials said are primarily dogs and cats, will be euthanized during the next week, and the entire building will be sanitized in an effort to clear the shelter of a virus that kills both cats and dogs and has thus far proved untreatable.

“It's a mystery,” Jay Blatche, the shelter’s animal services manager, said. “It is a very bad disease. Everyone here is saddened by what we are doing today. There's been some tears and I'm sure there will be some nightmares for our staff.”

The outbreak of an upper respiratory illness was first noticed about a month ago, according to shelter officials. Despite tests at the shelter and at animal virus labs at Cornell University and Oklahoma State University, the illness remains unidentified.

The shelter, located on U.S. 321 in Newton, is closed as of Wednesday. The animals currently housed there are considered to have been exposed to the illness and will be euthanized. Shelter officials said they made the decision in an effort to contain the virus.

“We have made this extremely difficult decision, in consultation with our contract veterinarian, to protect the health and safety of the total animal population of Catawba County,” Blatche said. “The action follows an increasing number of cases of an upper respiratory illness that continues to be seen in animals at the shelter. The virus results in high fever, vomiting and diarrhea and has proven very difficult to treat.”

In a further effort to contain the disease, no adoptions from the shelter are being allowed.

“It's terrible,” Terri Ziba, an animal lover who was turned away from the shelter on Wednesday, said. “I hate it. It's breaking my heart standing here thinking about it … because they need love.”

Shelter officials said animals that were adopted out of the shelter recently and then got sick have been returned.

The shelter typically takes 30 animals a day, but is not accepting animals from the public during the temporary closure.

The kennels will undergo a thorough sanitation process that includes cleaning with bleach, detergent and antimicrobial agents, as well as pressure cleaning with hot water. The entire shelter will be cleaned, along with the heating and air conditioning system.

A temporary shelter has been created outdoors to house animals until the regular shelter is reopened. Officials said they hope to contain the virus and reopen by Sept. 7.

The county will continue to provide animal control services, and the public can still contact the shelter to report dangerous situations involving animals.

Vietnam: Doan Vinh Long province check the disease situation in cattle, poultry

Previous post:

[bolded sentence could be a typo]
25/08/2010

In total 32 test samples sent to the 31 samples had positive results (in which a sample positive for avian influenza viruses).

24/08/10, 4:20 pm
Doan Vinh Long province check the disease situation in cattle, poultry

This morning (08/24), Truong Van Sau, Vice Chairman of Vinh Long and leaders DARD and provincial Animal Health Department to work with district leaders and Long Lake in Vung Liem district happenings disease situation in cattle and poultry.

So far, Long Ho district has 15 communes and towns have blue ear pig disease. Outbreak first appeared in Tan Hanh, then spread to other localities in the district. There are 157 households were reported to be sick pig and make records verified 2473 with the number of infected children.

Last time, blue ear pig disease situation in the district is complicated, in part because some farmers do not have good sense, has thrown identify dead pigs into the river and canals, creating opportunities for service spread rapidly.

Most farmers with small type, so the retail sector's control functions are limited. Funding for the inspection and supervision services as well as insufficient human resources also make it difficult for this work.

On Vung Liem district, outside the blue ear pig disease in poultry has also appeared in two and Quoi Thien Trung Chanh. District leaders have actively directed the local enhanced prevention, health and veterinary chemicals was granted the work of antiseptic disinfection, vaccination on cattle and poultry to prevent epidemic source. [Trên địa bàn huyện Vũng Liêm, ngoài dịch heo tai xanh thì dịch bệnh trên đàn gia cầm cũng đã xuất hiện ở 2 xã Trung Chánh và Quới Thiện.]

In addition, Vung Liem district also established interdisciplinary inspection team to check the focus of slaughter, the carcass in the market as well as examine the processes transporting livestock and poultry in the province, to avoid epidemic spread from sources outside the district and from outside the district.

At the meeting, Mr Truong Van Sau direct local concentration required for prevention of livestock diseases now.

To facilitate this work, he recommended that the Department of Finance Room service immediate response fund to support training for personnel working in quarantine, surveillance and additional drugs to disinfect disinfected areas where service same time further strengthening of human resources for this activity to ensure resources are translated block.

In addition, functional departments should coordinate closely with the press agencies - pushing for more media propaganda to raise public awareness about prevention of diseases on livestock and poultry.

Vietnam: Vinh Long - Blue Ear Pig Disease

[bolded sentence could be a typo]

25/08/2010
According to the Steering Committee for Prevention Service (PSC PCD) province, although all measures have been actively stamping service deployment but far blue ear pig is still very complex evolution, high-speed transmission and no signs of them.

To date 23 / 8, blue ear pig disease has spread and appeared in 8 / 8 districts with 68 communes, wards and towns have service. Total number of households with infected pigs is the 582 households with 10,591 children, which, with 9,662 children infected, killed 1907 children, 2562 child destruction, monitoring and treatment-selling 7034 children 47 children.

In total 32 test samples sent to the 31 samples had positive results (in which a sample positive for avian influenza viruses).

Before the evolution of increasingly complex blue ear pig, the provincial Animal Health Department has intensified its quarantine, disinfect disinfected transport livestock, poultry exporting province to step up inspection and supervision slaughter and sale of pork, while actively disinfect disinfectant in the market buying and selling livestock, meat stalls, the slaughterhouse ... Specifically, on 2 / 8 to 18 / 8, the province exported 26,698 quarantined pigs, destroyed 1.5 tons of processed meat of unknown origin; control slaughtering 14,663 pigs, ...

In addition to facilitate the work of stamping service, Department of Animal Health also conducted the services identified, the epidemic threatened and buffer for mapping blue ear pig disease epidemiology in the province. Besides, the veterinary station eight districts implementing communications, allocation prevention materials for farmers, and treatment guidelines swine disease, swine handling process dead .. .

But so far, the epidemic is still pressing difficulties. PSC PCD levels have not really actively monitor organizational diagnosis. The handling of the first outbreak are not synchronized, not isolated radical epidemic areas. Most outbreaks were discovered mainly through the people and most households have to be declared as infected pig time prolonged. Not to mention the hidden epidemic or people selling cheap herd that refused to cooperate with veterinary agencies This not only deprives the farmers but also for the work of disease control professionals become more difficult.

-snip-

Egyptian Ministry of Health announces human infection with bird flu, No. 112

Health 08/25/2010 5:39:00 PM

القاهرة - 25 - 8 (كونا) -- أعلنت وزارة الصحة اليوم عن الاصابة البشرية رقم 112 بانفلونزا الطيور منذ ظهور المرض في مصر مشيرة الى انها تعود لسيدة تبلغ من العمر 33 عاما من محافظة القليوبية وصفت حالتها الصحية بالحرجة. Cairo - 25-8 (KUNA) - Ministry of Health announced today that No. 112 of human infection with bird flu since the disease appeared in Egypt, pointing out that they belong to a woman, aged 33, from Qaliubiya described her condition critical. وأوضحت الوزارة في بيان صحافي ان السيدة التي ادخلت احد مستشفيات القاهرة أمس تعاني من ارتفاع في درجة الحرارة وكحة وصعوبة في التنفس وذلك عقب تعرضها لطيور يشتبه باصابتها بمرض انفلونزا الطيور. The ministry said in a press statement that the woman, who introduced a Cairo hospital on Thursday suffering from high temperature, cough and difficulty breathing after exposure to birds suspected of being affected by bird flu. (النهاية) ر غ / ر ج كونا251739 جمت اغو 10 (End) t g / t c KUNA Lago GMT 251 739 10

Egypt: Confirmed Case #112 Bird Flu

No. 112 of human infection with bird flu of a woman from Qaliubiya
Wednesday, August 25th, 2010 - 16:34

The Ministry of Health No. 112 of human infection with bird flu, since the disease appeared in Egypt and even now a woman from Qaloubiyah province, and her health is critical.

A statement issued by the Ministry of Health said Wednesday that new infection of a woman from Qaloubiyah province, at the age of 33 years, and entered a hospital in Cairo yesterday, suffering from high fever, cough and difficulty breathing, following exposure to birds suspected of being infected with bird flu.

The statement pointed out it was given Ms. drug "Tamiflu" on the spot, and her health is critical and is still receiving treatment in hospital.

Vietnam - Bird flu back with a vengence

Edited: This report can not be confirmed. The link does not go to OIE. OIE does have a report submitted on 8/17 for Gia Lai Province.

25 Aug 2010

The authorities sent an Immediate Notification dated 17 August to the World Organization for Animal Health (OIE).

The report describes six outbreaks (at two farms and four villages) of HPAI in four provinces of the country. In total, 6,525 birds were involved, of which 5,000 died and 1,525 were destroyed.

The presence of the H5N1 sub-type of the virus has been confirmed.

Mice can sniff out duck droppings laced with virus

Tracking bird flu one poop at a time

By Rachel Ehrenberg

BOSTON — Duck and goose droppings, the bane of golfers and park visitors, may help scientists track the spread of bird flu — with olfactory assistance from properly trained animals.

Scientists have trained mice to identify the poop of ducks infected with avian influenza, chemical ecologist Bruce Kimball reported August 24 at the American Chemical Society’s fall meeting.

If mice can pick up the scent, it should also be possible to train dogs to track the flu trail, said Kimball, of the National Wildlife Research Center in Fort Collins, Colorado, and the Monell Chemical Sciences Center in Philadelphia. “I like to joke that we’re going to send people out with mice on leashes,” he said. “But my vision is we could train dogs in much the same way.”

Mice trained on the scent of poop from infected birds correctly chose infected poop over uninfected poop 90 percent of the time, Kimball reported. When the mice were presented with new droppings not used in the training sessions, the rodents identified the flu-laced feces 77 percent of the time.

Many diseases, such as diabetes and some cancers, are known to alter the chemical profile of an infected individual’s breath, so the presence of a poop profile also seems reasonable, Kimball said. He and his colleagues suspect that the mice are tuning in to compounds produced by the ducks’ immune systems in response to the flu.

Evidence suggests that some duck species excrete much more flu virus than other birds, making the water birds prime disease spreaders via migratory travels or, more likely, when ducks are bought and sold in poultry markets. Hundreds of millions of ducks, chickens, turkeys, and geese died of flu or were killed to prevent the spread of the H5N1 virus that emerged in Hong Kong in the late 1990s. By 2006 more than 200 people had picked up the bug, and estimates suggest the economic impact of the disease was more than $10 billion.

If dogs can be trained to sniff out infected birds, it could streamline efforts to control an outbreak.

“Based on my experience, if a mouse can be trained for a scent chore, so can a dog,” said Gary Settles, director of the Gas Dynamics Laboratory at Pennsylvania State University in University Park. “Their olfactory apparatus is similar, just of a different size,” said Settles, who was not involved in the research. “I know of no chemical-trace detection chore that mice can do but dogs cannot.”

The scientists are still trying to figure out the precise chemical compounds that the mice latch on to, Kimball said. The research team irradiated the duck droppings to make sure the flu wasn’t infectious — a precaution that may have affected the poop’s smell profile, he said.

Qinzhou District to carry out post-disaster investigation and animal epidemic prevention

2010-08-25 03:35:00
Source: Gansuribao (Lanzhou) to keep abreast of the news on cell phones 0 Tianshui newspaper (Reporter Zhao Jianqing) "8.12" serious flash flood disasters Qinzhou District of Tianshui City, 12 towns 134 administrative villages, farm size, all kinds of backyard poultry farmers affected. In order to prevent the occurrence of animal diseases, the area immediately start the major animal disease prevention and control emergency response plan, carried out on various types of livestock and poultry disease control and timely investigation.

After the disaster, epidemic Qinzhou area immediately set up the diagnosis, disinfection and disposal of law enforcement supervision of three working groups, 31 professional and technical cadres in the disaster areas to carry out further investigation thoroughly, and search for the bodies, disinfection eliminate the source, farmers market regulation and immune complement needle, etc. . In recent days, a total of 50 000 bird flu epidemic, foot and mouth disease epidemic 32 000 (only), disinfection of sheds, farm produce and market a total of 50,000 square meters, 1,000 kg of release chlorine, disinfection equipment 100 sets (only), forfeiture is not Qualified 110 kilograms of meat, burning, processing of animal carcasses 22.