 "Photo: KRT Photo")
With all of the hype and controversy surrounding the threat of a global avian flu outbreak, anyone would think that we were back in the 1300s with the menacing and deadly epidemic of the bubonic plague upon us. If you haven't been paying attention to the news, here's a brief catch-up to the latest information on what could possibly result in a pandemic.
The disease in contention is the lethal H5N1 avian flu. It falls into the category of diseases known as zoonoses, which are animal diseases that can infect humans. It has killed approximately 62 people in Southeast Asia since 2003, according to the World Health Organization (WHO). Most of the accounted human deaths have occurred in people who have close contact with infected birds. The concern lies with the fact that health experts have cautioned this virus can potentially transform into a human-to-human communicable disease, initiating a worldwide endemic.
Preparations are being taken on both federal and global levels. Last week, President Bush issued a warning about the avian flu strain and discussed a $7.1 billion plan - which is currently in progress - in a speech addressed to the National Institutes of Health (NIH). In March, the Centers for Disease Control (CDC) ranked bird flu as the world's No. 1 public threat and health officials reason that now is the time to focus on preventative action.
Health officials are arguing that the world will not be prepared to face such a fatal disease unless governments have vaccination, quarantine, and treatment strategies devised and ready to be enacted. David Nabarro, the new United Nations coordinator for pandemic flu, reported to The New York Times that it is also necessary to perform repeated simulation drills involving healthcare providers, safety officials, and utility workers, among others.
Other preparations are being taken by U.S. agencies as part of a national preemptive measure. The National Wildlife Health Center is recruiting hundreds of ornithologists, veterinarians, amateur bird-watchers, and park rangers, as well as other professional wildlife experts to inspect birds found traveling along the main migratory paths in the United States. One devised strategy calls for testing bodies of water for the influenza virus, which can be found in bird excrement. Ducks and geese will be periodically captured and screened, and then returned to their natural habitat. Under this plan, farmers are currently mandated to report deaths of any birds from any type of flu strain.
Although the effects of the avian flu may seem distant, its appearance in the Western hemisphere may be closer than you think. On Nov. 5, a 19-year-old woman from Tangerang, Indonesia died of bird flu and her 8-year-old male family member contracted the virus and is currently hospitalized. The woman is believed to have contracted the virus from infected dead chickens in her neighborhood. Another outbreak was reported on Oct. 26 in Liaoning, China during which 8,940 chickens were killed. Since late 2003 the H5N1 strain of the avian flu has wiped out poultry stocks and infected humans working in close range to or with infected birds.
So by now you may be wondering if there really is any hope for survival if people in the United States become infected, and what is being done in terms of reducing the risk of the pandemic. Current efforts are being made to develop Tamiflu, an anti-influenza drug, which will most likely be used as a first line of defense against an epidemic. The Chinese spice star anise is the required starting material for the production of this pharmaceutical drug, and its amounts are insufficient to manufacture the increasingly popular global demand for Tamiflu. Professor John W. Frost, a chemist at Michigan State University, developed a technique for synthesizing the starting material, shikimic acid, without the use of the much sought after star anise. The pharmaceutical company Roche, which has recently used Frost's method of production, recently cut back its utilization of this production method, according to The New York Times. As a result, Frost is planning to start a company that would be able to handle creating the starting material in a larger capacity and without the reliance on star anise.
For now, the top line of defense is education and awareness. Paying attention to the latest news updates and travel advisories is the best way to keep yourself informed and prepared.
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