Thursday, June 01, 2006

AUSTRALIAN EXPERTS PUSH FOR H5N1 VIRUS TO BE ADDED TO STANDARD FLU VACCINATIONS

From the Sydney Morning Herald : "Time will be of the essence if a pandemic arises. It takes some months to produce a vaccine and it would be necessary to give two injections of vaccine at least two to three weeks apart to generate protection.

"One strategy would be to include the circulating H5N1 avian virus in the influenza vaccine that is produced each year to protect people from seasonal influenza.

"This would probably not protect us from a pandemic virus, but it might lessen the severity of the disease. Most importantly, it would give immune systems some exposure to H5N1, which might hasten the response to any new vaccine made for the pandemic virus.

"Putting the present H5N1 virus in the present vaccine could buy precious time if the next pandemic is caused by H5N1..."


The experts who wrote this editorial also claim that while avian influenza is "likely" to get into Australia, "we should not be overly concerned".

The core of their argument is that poultry farms, and chicken stocks, are positioned far enough away from each other that infected migratory birds would not be able to spread the virus around Australia as they fly from place to place.

While this is true, the factor of bird flu infections spreading through Europe, and across Asia, via poultry industry vehicles, workers and equipment, has not been ruled out by the World Health Organisation.

Go here for the full story.

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