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Bird flu virus not found in eight surveillance regions
From our correspondent
23 February 2006
LAHORE ? The Poultry Research Institute Rawalpindi could not find avian flu virus from the study of 200 samples, collected from eight surveillance regions.
According to the available details, the Institute selected eight zones namely Rawalpindi/ Islamabad, Jehlum/ Gujrat/ Attock, Chakwal/Mianwali, Toba Tek Singh/ Kamalia/ Sumundri, Okara/ Sahiwal/Arifwala, Lahore/ Sheikhupura/ Kasur/ Gujranwala, Faisalabad/ Jhang and the south Punjab belt, starting from Multan and ending at Rahim Yar Khan, for the survey.
These samples were collected from a total of 300 farms, randomly selected from the eight zones, where about 13.56 million birds were surveyed. L&DD sources maintained that the 200 samples isolated for virus detection, did not show any traces of the avian flu virus. Likewise, out of the 5,882 incidents of poultry disease reported to the Veterinary Research Institute Lahore, in the period from July 2005 to January 2006, also did not show any such traces.
Officials at VRI said that the cases reported to the institute, were of new cattle disease, pneumonia and CRD, all related to respiratory system of the poultry bird.
Meanwhile, the Punjab government, in the wake of outbreak of the H5N1 bird flu virus in some countries, has asked all government hospitals/institutions to ensure availability of bird flu kits with them to cope with an emergency situation.
Punjab health department, on behalf of the federal health ministry, has asked all the principals of autonomous institutions, executive districts officers (health) and all the medical superintendents of district headquarter hospitals in the Punjab to be vigilant to meet any expected challenge of bird flu. The health department has also directed the district authorities to maintain a kit as a part of preparedness planning for bird flu (avian influenza), which would comprise of antibiotics (Quninolones, Claritbromycin, 3rd Generation Cephalosporins), intravenous fluids, ventilators (to be kept at each DHQ hospital and four major/teaching hospitals of big cities), Oseltamiver 75mg capsules, Oseltarniver 12mg per ml suspension (to be available at provincial centres).
They have also urged availability of face masks preferably ?Nanomasks?, gloves, apron, caps, goggles and shoes for protection of patients and healthcare workers.
A letter addressed to all concerned revealed that avian influnza may result in rapid systemic illness and death to susceptible birds. Domestic chickens and turkeys are most severely affected; mortality in these birds often exceeds 50 per cent. Outbreaks of a highly pathogenic strain of the subtype H5NI have been reported in south-east Asia since 2003, causing the unprecedented loss of about 150 million birds, and the disease is now considered ?entrenched? in areas of Vietnam, Indonesia, Cambodia, China, Thailand and Laos.
The health department has initiated the guidelines for prevention and control of human cases of avian influnza disease with joint collaboration of the Public Health Laboratories Division, National Institute of Health, Islamabad (PHLD-NIH), World Health Organisation (WHO), Global Infectious Disease Surveillance and Alert System, and Epidemic Investigation Cell (EIC). Patients meeting case definition for suspected avian influnza should be hospitalised under isolation or kept with other avian influenza patients and cared for using barrier-nursing techniques.
From our correspondent
23 February 2006
LAHORE ? The Poultry Research Institute Rawalpindi could not find avian flu virus from the study of 200 samples, collected from eight surveillance regions.
According to the available details, the Institute selected eight zones namely Rawalpindi/ Islamabad, Jehlum/ Gujrat/ Attock, Chakwal/Mianwali, Toba Tek Singh/ Kamalia/ Sumundri, Okara/ Sahiwal/Arifwala, Lahore/ Sheikhupura/ Kasur/ Gujranwala, Faisalabad/ Jhang and the south Punjab belt, starting from Multan and ending at Rahim Yar Khan, for the survey.
These samples were collected from a total of 300 farms, randomly selected from the eight zones, where about 13.56 million birds were surveyed. L&DD sources maintained that the 200 samples isolated for virus detection, did not show any traces of the avian flu virus. Likewise, out of the 5,882 incidents of poultry disease reported to the Veterinary Research Institute Lahore, in the period from July 2005 to January 2006, also did not show any such traces.
Officials at VRI said that the cases reported to the institute, were of new cattle disease, pneumonia and CRD, all related to respiratory system of the poultry bird.
Meanwhile, the Punjab government, in the wake of outbreak of the H5N1 bird flu virus in some countries, has asked all government hospitals/institutions to ensure availability of bird flu kits with them to cope with an emergency situation.
Punjab health department, on behalf of the federal health ministry, has asked all the principals of autonomous institutions, executive districts officers (health) and all the medical superintendents of district headquarter hospitals in the Punjab to be vigilant to meet any expected challenge of bird flu. The health department has also directed the district authorities to maintain a kit as a part of preparedness planning for bird flu (avian influenza), which would comprise of antibiotics (Quninolones, Claritbromycin, 3rd Generation Cephalosporins), intravenous fluids, ventilators (to be kept at each DHQ hospital and four major/teaching hospitals of big cities), Oseltamiver 75mg capsules, Oseltarniver 12mg per ml suspension (to be available at provincial centres).
They have also urged availability of face masks preferably ?Nanomasks?, gloves, apron, caps, goggles and shoes for protection of patients and healthcare workers.
A letter addressed to all concerned revealed that avian influnza may result in rapid systemic illness and death to susceptible birds. Domestic chickens and turkeys are most severely affected; mortality in these birds often exceeds 50 per cent. Outbreaks of a highly pathogenic strain of the subtype H5NI have been reported in south-east Asia since 2003, causing the unprecedented loss of about 150 million birds, and the disease is now considered ?entrenched? in areas of Vietnam, Indonesia, Cambodia, China, Thailand and Laos.
The health department has initiated the guidelines for prevention and control of human cases of avian influnza disease with joint collaboration of the Public Health Laboratories Division, National Institute of Health, Islamabad (PHLD-NIH), World Health Organisation (WHO), Global Infectious Disease Surveillance and Alert System, and Epidemic Investigation Cell (EIC). Patients meeting case definition for suspected avian influnza should be hospitalised under isolation or kept with other avian influenza patients and cared for using barrier-nursing techniques.
