Bird Flu Reappears In Europe On A Hungarian Farm

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Main Category: Bird Flu / Avian Flu
Also Included In: Veterinary;  Public Health
Article Date: 25 Jan 2007 - 5:00 PDT

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The Hungarian authorities have reported to the European Union an outbreak of avian flu that is suspected to be the deadly H5N1 strain in the south east part of the country. The part of the country affected is Csongrad County, where the virus has been found in 40 geese on an isolated farm.

The last reported case of avian flu in a European Union country was in August last year in a wild bird in Germany. Samples taken from the Hungarian dead geese have been sent to a UK-based European Union laboratory to confirm that the virus is the suspected H5N1 strain. The Hungarian Ministry of Agriculture have performed preliminary tests and suspect that it is.

A total of 3,300 geese have been culled on the farm, and the area is being kept under surveillance according to EU rules. No other culling is anticipated at present, since the farm is very isolated and the disease is unlikely to spread to neighbouring farms, said Miklos Suth, Chief Veterinarian, on Hungarian TV yesterday.

According to the United Nations Food and Agriculture Organization (FAO), the deadly bird flu virus is persisting in East Asia and some African countries. And in a recent report issued in Rome and and at a press conference in Bangkok this week they expressed their concern about new outbreaks in China, Egypt, Indonesia, Japan, Nigeria, South Korea, Thailand and Viet Nam. However, the UN organization says that the number of flare-ups so far this year has been lower than this time last year.

The FAO is urging that countries don't slack in their vigilance and continue to cooperate fully with the international organizations since the virus is still killing people and destroying the livelihoods of farmers and their families.

It is important that countries encourage farmers to come forward without fear of reprisals, and that "absolute transparency" is maintained in the reporting of disease outbreaks. Farmers should be compensated, and such approaches are the key to a successful bird flu control campaign, said the FAO in their report.

"Only immediate reporting of any suspected bird flu outbreak makes possible rapid intervention by farmers and veterinarians," said Juan Lubroth, Senior Officer of the FAO Animal Health Service, at the press conference. "Unfortunately, many outbreaks remain unreported. National and international bodies are often not in a position to immediately verify rumors or reports about unconfirmed outbreaks."

At an earlier meeting of avian flu donors in October in Rome last year, the UN system coordinator for influenza, David Nabarro, drew the world's attention to the avian flu situation by calling it a "marker" of what can happen if insufficient attention is given to animal health. This is especially so when disease crosses over from animal into human hosts.

Nabarro drew parallels with other animal diseases that have crossed over into humans, such as SARS (severe acute respiratory syndrome) and HIV (human immunodeficiency virus). He said that if more emphasis had been placed on animal health and protecting humans from animal infection the current crises could have been avoided.

He asked the meeting "Why do we spend so much defending ourselves against terrorism or natural disasters, but so little in defending ourselves from animal disease?" He said that the real threat to human life comes from "bugs in the animal kingdom" and called for a change in the way that all the stakeholders mobilise forces to act quickly, particularly those involved in animal production and trading. And in the case of bird flu, the vast majority of those affected are poor people who come into daily contact with their domestic poultry. We have to "engage them in the struggle, they have to be our partners," he said.

The World Health Organization reported on 22nd January that 260 cases of H5N1 human cases have now been reported worldwide, of which 163 have died, with Indonesia (62) and Viet Nam (42) carrying the highest death toll.

WHO Avian Influenza website.

Food and Agriculture Organization of the United Nations Avian Flu Website

Written by: Catharine Paddock
Writer: Medical News Today
Copyright: Medical News Today
Not to be reproduced without permission of Medical News Today

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