Avian Influenza LPAI Caribbean Trinidad and Tobago

[Sharpe]

http://www.newsday.co.tt/news/0,42766.html

?Low strain? Bird Flu found in TTSaturday, August 19 2006
<script language="javascript" type="text/javascript"> var curPic=0;var artPics = new Array(); artPics[0] = new Array(); artPics[0]['src'] = '/galeria/mini/2006-08-19-3-1a.jpg'; artPics[0]['link'] = 'http://www.newsday.co.tt/day/1,3212.html#foto'; artPics[0]['desc'] = 'AMUMMY'S LITTLE HELPER: Richard Ramnarine, three, is seen helping his mother sell corn at a stall in front of a grocery off the Cunupia Main Road yest...'; function nextPic(id) { if ( curPic+id >= artPics.length ) { curPic=0; $('click').innerHTML=''; } else if (curPic+id < 0) { curPic=artPics.length; } else { curPic=curPic+id; } if (curPic!=0) $('click').innerHTML = '<small>click on pic to zoom in</small>'; imgid = $('div_art_foto'); descid = $('art_foto_desc'); linkid = $('art_foto_link'); if (curPic!=0) { imgid.innerHTML=''; } else { imgid.innerHTML='

'; } if(artPics[curPic]['desc'].length>0) descid.innerHTML = '<small>'+artPics[curPic]['desc']+'</small>' else descid.innerHTML = ''; } </script>THE AGRICULTURE Ministry yesterday announced that a ?low pathogenic strain? of Avian Influenza (AI) has been detected at a farm in Central Trinidad. The Ministry said it should not be confused with the H5N1 strain of AI which is responsible for deaths in Asia and Western Europe.
The Ministry said the low pathogenic strain of AI (LPAI) ?does not pose a significant threat to human beings.?

In a release issued after 5 pm yesterday, the Ministry said the strain was discovered during routine surveillance for the presence of the H5N1 strain of AI.

It said LPAI is found in birds populations throughout the world and its occurrence in TT ?is not surprising.? The disease does not have severe symptoms which is why it is deemed a low pathogen.

?It does have some agricultural significance as it may cause deaths in poultry, although the impact on the country?s poultry industry is expected to be negligible,? the release stated.

Samples have been sent to the United Kingdom for verification and the Ministry said measures are being implemented to contain the spread of the disease.

The Ministry is taking a ?positive? view of the identification of LPAI saying it provided proof that measures implemented to detect Bird Flu were effective. No information was available regarding culling of birds at the farm, which was not identified.

Bird deaths at a farm in Cumuto earlier this year caused chicken sales to plummet across the country as people feared contracting H5N1. The deaths were linked to aspergillosis ? a fungal infection, and thousands of birds had to be culled at Cumuto.

 

[Harriet]

Trinidad:Low strain? Bird Flu found

Trinidad:Low strain? Bird Flu found

?Low strain? Bird Flu found in TT
Saturday, August 19 2006

THE AGRICULTURE Ministry yesterday announced that a ?low pathogenic strain? of Avian Influenza (AI) has been detected at a farm in Central Trinidad. The Ministry said it should not be confused with the H5N1 strain of AI which is responsible for deaths in Asia and Western Europe.

The Ministry said the low pathogenic strain of AI (LPAI) ?does not pose a significant threat to human beings.?

In a release issued after 5 pm yesterday, the Ministry said the strain was discovered during routine surveillance for the presence of the H5N1 strain of AI.

It said LPAI is found in birds populations throughout the world and its occurrence in TT ?is not surprising.? The disease does not have severe symptoms which is why it is deemed a low pathogen.

?It does have some agricultural significance as it may cause deaths in poultry, although the impact on the country?s poultry industry is expected to be negligible,? the release stated.

Samples have been sent to the United Kingdom for verification and the Ministry said measures are being implemented to contain the spread of the disease.

The Ministry is taking a ?positive? view of the identification of LPAI saying it provided proof that measures implemented to detect Bird Flu were effective. No information was available regarding culling of birds at the farm, which was not identified.

Bird deaths at a farm in Cumuto earlier this year caused chicken sales to plummet across the country as people feared contracting H5N1. The deaths were linked to aspergillosis ? a fungal infection, and thousands of birds had to be culled at Cumuto.

 

[Theresa42]

Re: Low path strain detected in Trinidad and Tobago

Re: Low path strain detected in Trinidad and Tobago

Gee ... what a surprise ....

 

[kr105]

Some 2,000 birds dead in Trinidad

Some 2,000 birds dead in Trinidad

Some 2,000 birds dead in Trinidad, cause unknown
(AP)
Updated: 2006-01-10 09:59


The health minister of the Caribbean country of Trinidad promised an investigation Monday after 2,000 chickens died at several farms in eastern Trinidad, but said he doubted the cause was bird flu.

The birds have been dying since last Thursday in half a dozen large farms around Cumuto, 25 miles east of the capital, Port-of-Spain, said a farmer who did not want to be identified because he was worried of losing contracts with customers.

It was unknown if the birds died from the deadly H5N1 strain of bird flu that has already killed more than 70 people in East Asia since 2003.

"I don't want to alarm the country," said Trinidad's Health Minister John Rahael. "An immediate investigation will be launched to determine the cause of death of the birds, but I don't think it's bird flu."

An Associated Press reporter saw the dozens of dead chickens scattered around the fields. Farmers said they had buried hundreds of dead chickens in nearby fields.

Farmers were trying to round up sick chickens to keep them in quarantine away from the rest of their flocks. Those chickens have swollen stomachs, watery eyes, a lack of appetite and grayish blue skin, farmers said.

Agriculture Minister Jarett Narine did not return calls for comment, and it was not immediately possible to determine when authorities would be able to identify what killed the birds.

In October, a mild strain of bird flu that poses no threat to humans was discovered in chickens in Colombia. Colombian authorities carried out 18,000 tests on chickens at more than 200 farms across the Andean nation and said they haven't detected any new cases.

Experts worry that the lethal H5N1 bird flu virus sweeping through bird flocks in Asia and pockets of eastern Europe could mutate into a human flu that could kill millions.

http://www.chinadaily.com.cn/english/doc/2006-01/10/content_510949.htm

 

[ruthbeme]

Re: H5N1 LPAI in the Caribbean TT

Re: H5N1 LPAI in the Caribbean TT

Is my understanding correct, that most birds do not die of the Low pathogenic strain? So if that is the case, why would they automatically assume that it is the low pathogenic strain? Please correct me if I'm wrong. The birds that were found here in Michigan, with the low path strain, were found alive.

 

[Niko]

Re: Some 2,000 birds dead in Trinidad

Re: Some 2,000 birds dead in Trinidad

Some 2,000 birds dead in Trinidad, cause unknown
(AP)
Updated: 2006-01-10 09:59


The health minister of the Caribbean country of Trinidad promised an investigation Monday after 2,000 chickens died at several farms in eastern Trinidad, but said he doubted the cause was bird flu.

**snipped**

http://www.chinadaily.com.cn/english/doc/2006-01/10/content_510949.htm

NOTE: The date of the article is 2006-01-10. Important for background but not breaking news.

.

 

[MHSC]

Re: H5N1 LPAI in the Caribbean TT

Re: H5N1 LPAI in the Caribbean TT

Is my understanding correct, that most birds do not die of the Low pathogenic strain? So if that is the case, why would they automatically assume that it is the low pathogenic strain? Please correct me if I'm wrong. The birds that were found here in Michigan, with the low path strain, were found alive.

You are right that birds don't usually die from low path, but once low path is found in an area it can mutate to high path if it can survive long enough.

 

[ruthbeme]

Re: H5N1 LPAI in the Caribbean TT

Re: H5N1 LPAI in the Caribbean TT

Thank you for confirming this MHSC. I was starting to think that my beliefs were inaccurate.

 

[caroltracker]

Re: H5N1 LPAI in the Caribbean TT -- NOT

Re: H5N1 LPAI in the Caribbean TT -- NOT

1. Nowhere in the Trinidad press release does it say that the strain they found is LPAI H5N1. They apparently do not know yet what LPAI strain they have found.

All they said is that it is LPAI, and that it is not the (current, panzootic) HPAI H5N1 strain that is worrying all of us.

2. A preliminary diagnosis of LPAI vs HPAI is usually based on the PCR or other rapid screening tests, plus the clinical presentation -- not much morbidity. A definitive diagnosis of HP vs LP AI is based on "chicken pathogenicity" testing. USDA has a very good description of the testing process at: http://tinyurl.com/jrkuj

3. The "thousands" of dead poultry found in Trinidad in January 2006 were diagnosed as having aspergillosis, a fairly common fungal disease. Ironically, the dead birds were reported to the press by a farmer who saw them on her neighbor's farm -- starting the false rumor that those dead birds had "bird flu" -- apparently not realizing that HER chickens would also have to be culled to try to "ring fence" the outbreak if it had been bird flu!

 

[kr105]

Re: Some 2,000 birds dead in Trinidad

Re: Some 2,000 birds dead in Trinidad

NOTE: The date of the article is 2006-01-10. Important for background but not breaking news.

.

Hi, I remembered this artilcle from earlier in the year and thought it was an appropriate piece of background information. That's why it was posted as a reply, instead of it's own thread. Hope this clarifies matters.