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Sunday, October 23, 2005

Avian Flu: Pandemic In The Making?

Avian Flu hits Croatia, Sweden and Great Britain. So is this going to spread all the way to the US and the rest of the world? The case in Britain involved a parrot from Surinam (South America). Right now no humans have been killed in Europe and the disease can not jump from person to person.
There are 6 stages of pandemic

Inter Pandemic Period
I Influenza-virus subtype may be present in animals
II Animal subtype poses substantial risk of human disease

Pandemic-Alert Period
III Human infection(s) but no human to human spread
IV Small cluster(s) with limited human to human transmissions
V Larger cluster(s) but spread still localized

Pandemic Period
VI Pandemic: Increased and sustained transmission in general population


One thing to keep in mind: the ‘Spanish flu’ of 1918 killed at least 50 million people world-wide. Are we on the same path here………………….

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