Lack of awareness on flu proving fatal: virologist
The two latest victims of the avian-flu virus died due to insufficient surveillance and the lack of a proper warning system, leading virologist Prasert Thongcharoen said yesterday.
"No one warned them the virus was even out there," he said, referring to residents of Phichit and Uthai Thani, the provinces where the first and second bird fatalities this year were reported, respectively. When chickens in these areas died, the victims simply used the birds for cooking or handled the carcasses without proper protection - unaware of the existence of the virus, he said. On July 24, the Agriculture Ministry reluctantly conceded there might be an epidemic of avian flu in Phichit when samples of dead poultry tested positive for the subtype H5. Officials said they could not be sure if it was the H5N1 strain of the virus, which can be deadly to humans. On July 27, the Public Health Ministry announced that a 17-year-old man in Phichit had died of bird flu, three days after the laboratory results showed he had the virus. The second case, in Uthai Thani, was confirmed by the Public Health Ministry on the weekend, while the Agriculture Ministry continued to insist it had not found any bird-flu virus in the province. To curb such preventable losses, Prasert said, "We need a surveillance system that is fast and accurate - plus a rapid response capability. Otherwise, we will have far more cases to deal with." Prasert said the absence of epidemic warnings makes it harder for doctors to treat patients with bird flu, given that it is really a new disease in terms of medical treatment. "Is anyone truly experienced in treating bird-flu patients? No. We're trying to catch up with this virus," he said. Prasert also supported the Public Health Ministry's observations that illegally used vaccines in poultry could mask the virus during testing. Such vaccines helped infected poultry survive and continue to spread the virus, while appearing healthy. As a result, the risk of humans succumbing to the virus from infected poultry was even greater, he said. Poultry vaccines against avian flu might be of benefit in some countries where bio-safety could be well monitored, but not in Thailand where common carriers of the virus such as ducks still are largely free-range, said Prasert.
Arthit Khwankhom The Nation
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