What Measures Is The Uk Taking
The government has said the chief veterinary officers for each of the UKs constituent nations have agreed to bring in new housing measures to protect poultry and captive birds from avian influenza following a number of confirmed cases across Great Britain in recent weeks. It added: The new housing measures, which will come into force on Monday 29 November, mean that it will be a legal requirement for all bird keepers across the UK to keep their birds indoors and to follow strict biosecurity measures in order to limit the spread of and eradicate the disease.
What Is The Benefit Of The Fda
The H5N1 vaccine approved by the U.S. Food and Drug Administration on April 17, 2007, was developed as a safeguard against the possible emergence of an H5N1 pandemic virus. However, the H5N1 virus is not a pandemic virus because it does not transmit efficiently from person to person, so the H5N1 vaccine is being held in stockpiles rather than being used by the general public. This vaccine aids H5N1 preparedness efforts in case an H5N1 pandemic virus were to emerge.
Vaccines For Pandemic Influenza
Candidate inactivated pandemic influenza vaccines are currently in development, and two monovalent vaccines for H5N1 have been licensed . Generally, IIVs have been found to be relatively inefficient at generating functional serum antibody responses, requiring multiple high doses.405-407 Several general findings have subsequently emerged from studies done with candidate inactivated H5N1 vaccines. As expected, two doses were required to generate immune responses in naïve subjects. Higher doses are more immunogenic than lower doses, with a more dramatic dose-response relationship than seen with seasonal vaccine. In contrast to seasonal vaccine, whole-virus preparations may be more immunogenic than subunit vaccines, although differences in immunogenicity are marginal. Administration of vaccine by the intradermal route does not provide better immune responses nor allow substantial dose sparing.
Aluminum-containing adjuvants have been shown to only modestly enhance responses to some pandemic formulations. In contrast, oil-in-waterbased emulsions have repeatedly been shown to enhance the magnitude and the breadth of immune responses to avian influenza vaccines and provide substantial dose sparing.408 These studies have shown higher titers of antibody against the vaccine virus, as well as against antigenic variants, the development of B cells that recognize a larger variety of HA epitopes, and broadened and more vigorous CD4 T-cell responses.409,410
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Multiple Reasons For Caution
In a statement yesterday afternoon, the USDA explained multiple reasons for not moving forward with any poultry vaccinations now, although the agency continues to work on developing a vaccine for the highly pathogenic avian influenza H5N2 and H5N8 viruses circulating in US flocks.
“Vaccines currently available are not well matched and do not meet a suitable level of efficacy,” the statement said. “USDA also wants to be sure that the vaccine industry is in a position to produce enough doses to create an effective control measure. Finally, additional outreach with trading partners will be required to avoid significant market disruptions.”
USDA officials reported in March that existing vaccine “seed strains” for H5 viruses had been tested and found not sufficiently effective. In the new statement, the agency said, “The vaccine currently available offers just 60 percent effectiveness in chickens, leaving 4 in 10 birds unprotected. The vaccine’s effectiveness in turkeys is still being studied.”
The statement did not identify the vaccine or its manufacturer. In response to a query today, Joelle Hayden, a spokeswoman for the USDA’s Animal and Plant Health Inspection Service , declined to name the vaccine but said it is “in production for use internationally and licensed for emergency use in the US.”
Can Cats Spread H5n1 To People
There is no evidence to date that cats can spread H5N1 to humans. No cases of avian influenza in humans have been linked to exposure to sick cats, and no outbreaks among populations of cats have been reported. All of the influenza A infections in cats reported to date appear to have been associated with outbreaks in domestic or wild birds and acquired through ingestion of raw meat from an infected bird.
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Questions About Adverse Side Effects And Who Should Not Be Immunized
What are the risks associated with the vaccine?
The vaccine was generally well-tolerated by the recipients in the study, with pain and tenderness at the injection site, headache, general ill feeling, and muscle pain being the most common complaints. However, because the number of people studied was small, rare safety events may not have been identified, but given the potential risk of a pandemic, which can cause serious illness and death its benefits outweigh its risks. In addition, Sanofi Pasteur has agreed to work with the U.S. government to gather additional information on the safety and effectiveness of the vaccine should it be used in the event of a pandemic.
How will FDA monitor the safety of a pandemic influenza vaccine if it is used
During the 2009 H1N1 pandemic, FDA and other federal agencies including the Department of Veterans Affairs, Department of Defense, and the CDC contributed to the monitoring the safety of the 2009 H1N1 influenza vaccine and would likely do so for any future pandemic vaccines that are used.
What if a pandemic is declared and the influenza virus strain of the pandemic is different than the influenza virus strain in this vaccine?
The goal of pandemic preparedness is to develop additional vaccines and vaccination strategies that will be ready for use against various strains that have the potential to cause a pandemic.
Does the vaccine contain a preservative?
Will the vaccine be available to anyone who wants it?
If It Just Affects Birds Why The Panic
It doesnt. World Health Organization figures show that from 2003 to 2021 there were 863 confirmed cases of the H5N1 virus in humans. Of these cases, 456 people died. While transmission is rare, it has happened.
So far, most of the human deaths have been in countries in Asia, in communities in which people live in close proximity to poultry. Although it does not easily infect humans, every time it does it increases the chance that the virus could mutate into a form that could be passed from one infected human to another. The WHO fears this could lead to a flu pandemic.
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What Does Cdc Recommend Regarding H5n1 Virus
In February 2004, CDC provided U.S. public health departments with recommendations for enhanced surveillance of H5N1 influenza in the country. Follow-up messages, distributed via the Health Alert Network, were sent to the health departments on August 12, 2004, February 4, 2005, and June 7, 2006 all three notices reminded public health departments about recommendations for detecting , diagnosing, and preventing the spread of H5N1 virus. The notices also recommended measures for laboratory testing for H5N1 virus.
Mode Of Transmission Of Avian Influenza Virus
Direct contact with infected poultry, or surfaces and objects contaminated by their faeces, is presently considered the main route of human infection. Infected birds shed large quantities of virus in their faeces thus, there are many opportunities to be exposed to infected droppings or to environments contaminated by the virus. Exposure is considered most likely during slaughter, defeathering, butchering, and preparation of poultry for cooking.
However, AI viruses are not easily spread from birds to people. Even with the highly pathogenic H5N1 AI virus, to which many thousands of humans have been exposed, few cases occur.
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Should I Wear A Surgical Mask To Prevent Exposure To Avian Influenza
Currently, wearing a mask is not recommended for routine use for preventing influenza exposure. In the United States, disposable surgical and procedure masks have been widely used in health-care settings to prevent exposure to respiratory infections, but the masks have not been used commonly in community settings, such as schools, businesses, and public gatherings.
What Are The Types Of Bird Flu
The bird flu virus, avian influenza A, is divided into two main categories:
- Highly pathogenic avian influenza causes more serious illness in chickens and is more likely to kill them.
- Low pathogenicity avian influenza causes less serious illness in chickens and is less likely to cause death.
Both versions can spread quickly through bird flocks and may cause serious illness in humans. This is important because birds infected with LPAI viruses may show little or no sign of disease as it spreads to animals or humans.
Viruses often change over time, leading to different subtypes called strains. When bird flu infects humans, which is rare, it’s most often from strains known as H5, H7, and H9. Less commonly, researchers have detected H10N8, H10N7, and H6N8 strains in humans.
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Is There A Vaccine To Protect People From Some Strains Of The H5n1 Virus
Yes. On April 17, 2007, the U.S. Food and Drug Administration announced its approval of the first vaccine to prevent human infection with one strain of the avian influenza H5N1 virus. The vaccine, produced by sanofi pasteur, Inc., has been purchased by the federal government for the U.S. Strategic National Stockpile it will be distributed by public-health officials if needed. This vaccine will not be made commercially available to the general public. Other H5N1 vaccines are being developed by other companies against different H5N1 strains. For more information about the sanofi pasteur, Inc. vaccine, see FDA Approves First U.S. Vaccine for Humans Against the Avian Influenza Virus H5N1. For information about other H5N1 and pandemic flu vaccine research activities visit Vaccine Research.
Making A Candidate Vaccine Virus For A Hpai Virus
A candidate vaccine virus is an influenza virus that has been prepared by CDC or another public health partner that can be used by vaccine manufacturers to produce a flu vaccine. In addition to preparing CVVs for seasonal flu vaccine production, CDC routinely develops CVVs for novel avian influenza viruses with pandemic potential as part of pandemic preparedness activities. Some novel bird flu viruses with pandemic potential are highly pathogenic avian influenza viruses, which means they are deadly to domestic poultry, including chickens. Data collected through global and animal flu surveillance informs the selection of CVVs, and experts choose CVVs against bird flu viruses in nature that pose a risk to human health.
The creation of a CVV for a novel bird flu virus is a multistep process that takes months, from start to finish. Creating a bird flu CVV is usually more complicated than the process for creating a seasonal flu CVV. There are five steps involved in the creation of a bird flu CVV, including the following:
These steps are described below.
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False Claim: The 1918 Influenza Pandemic Was Caused By Vaccines
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The claim that the influenza pandemic of 1918 was the after-effect of the massive nation-wide vaccine campaign is unfounded. A vaccine against the flu did not exist at the time. According to the Centers for Disease Control and Prevention , having no vaccine to protect against influenza infection and no antibiotics to treat secondary bacterial infections that can be associated with influenza infections meant that control efforts worldwide were limited to non-pharmaceutical interventions,such as isolation, quarantine, good personal hygiene, use of disinfectants, and limitations of public gatherings, which were applied unevenly.
According to the CDC report Achievements in Public Health, 1900-1999, prior to 1900, the vaccines for smallpox, rabies, typhoid, cholera and plague had been developed in the U.S. . The report states that although the first vaccine against smallpox was developed in 1796, greater than 100 years later its use had not been widespread enough to fully control the disease Four other vaccines — against rabies, typhoid, cholera, and plague — had been developed late in the 19th century but were not used widely by 1900.
Killing an estimated 675,000 Americans , the 1918 H1N1 flu pandemic was indeed the deadliest flu pandemic in modern history .
How Do You Spot The Virus In Birds
Symptoms in infected birds include a swollen head and blue discoloration around the neck and throat. They will also show signs of breathing problems including gaping beaks, coughing, sneezing and rattling wheezing. Poultry farmers will also notice a loss of appetite in the infected birds and a decrease in egg laying.
People are advised not touch or pick up any dead or visibly sick birds they find. In Great Britain, dead wild waterfowl or other wild birds should be reported to Defra. Some will then be collected and tested to help scientists understand how the disease is distributed geographically and in different types of bird.
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Ts: What Does Infection Look Like In Birds
CM: The highly pathogenic H5N1, what that does is in kept birdsparticularly specific species the Galliformes chickens and turkeysit can cause a variety of clinical signs . . . respiratory signs or neurological signs. They can have twisted necks. They can have discolored combs, and . . . kind of runny eyes and so on, and maybe diarrhea, and then often rapid death. You get a rapidly increasing mortality, generally, where you keep a large number of birds together. And you may note before that some reduction in food intake or water intake. . . . And that gives us a heads up. The owner, they report to us that they suspect they have a notifiable avian disease outbreak happening in the premises and we can investigate.
How Bird Flu Spreads To Humans
Bird flu is spread by close contact with an infected bird .
This includes:
- touching droppings or bedding
- killing or preparing infected poultry for cooking
Markets where live birds are sold can also be a source of bird flu. Avoid visiting these markets if you’re travelling to countries that have had an outbreak of bird flu. You can check health advice for the country you’re visiting on the TravelHealthPro website.
You can’t catch bird flu through eating fully cooked poultry or eggs, even in areas with an outbreak of bird flu.
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What Is The Percentage Of People Who Had Been Vaccinated And Who Still Die From The Flu No One Ever Talks About Those Statistics
I dont have any data on deaths due to the H1N1 virus, specifically in people who had been vaccinated. We know that the seasonal flu vaccine has an efficacy rate of around 60-70%, depending on the year and the patient population. We also know that some patients who get vaccinated still get the flu, especially if theyre older or if they have a weakened immune system. Some people even need to be hospitalized. Personally, Ive never seen a death from the H1N1 flu in a person who had been vaccinated, but that doesnt mean it cant happen.
World Animal Health Organisation Disease Freedom
Following confirmation of H5N1 HPAI in a small poultry unit at a premises near Alcester, Bidford, Warwickshire, the UK is no longer free from avian influenza under the World Organisation for Animal Health rules. There are, therefore, some restrictions on exports of affected commodities to third countries. Trade in poultry and poultry related products with third countries that do not require whole UK avian influenza country freedom may continue on the basis of the conditions included in the export health certificates, unless otherwise notified by the importing country.
Agreed export health certificates between the UK and importing countries are considered and issued on a case-by-case basis and can be certified by an Official Veterinarian only if the consignment meets the requirements set out in the export health certificates in full.
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What Animals Can Be Infected With Avian Influenza A Viruses
In addition to humans and birds, we know that pigs, tigers, leopards, ferrets and domestic cats can be infected with avian influenza A viruses. In addition, in early March 2006, Germany reported H5N1 infection in a stone marten . The avian influenza A virus that emerged in Asia in 2003 is evolving and it’s possible that other mammals may be susceptible to infection as well. CDC is working closely with domestic and international partners to continually monitor this situation and will provide additional information to the public as it becomes available.
Should Travellers Take Special Precautions
Before departing discuss the risk of avian influenza with your doctor as part of your routine pre-travel health checks.
Australians travelling overseas are encouraged to avoid contact with live domestic birds on farms and in market places and avoid contact with sick or dead birds. Practise good hygiene at all times. Ensuring all uncooked poultry and eggs are handled hygienically with careful attention to hand washing after handling. Only eat properly cooked poultry and eggs. Proper cooking destroys the virus in poultry and eggs.
Based on available information, the evolution of a new clade of the H5N1 virus identified in 2011 as circulating in poultry in parts of Asia poses no increased risk to public health. It is not considered unusual because influenza viruses are constantly evolving, especially in areas where they circulate regularly in poultry.
While travelling, it is suggested that you regularly check the Department of Foreign Affairs and Trade Travel Bulletin and country specific travel advice for information about any change to the current situation and whether additional precautions are recommended.
Returning to Australia
When returning to Australia from overseas, you must declare for inspection any poultry meat and products , fresh or preserved eggs or egg products, feathers and items containing feathers, poultry vaccines, and any other animal products, plant material and food.
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