Experts warn Vietnam of winter bird flu threat

[Snowy Owl]

Experts warn Vietnam of winter bird flu threat
http://www.thanhniennews.com/healthy/?catid=8&newsid=21324

<table align="left" border="0" cellpadding="0" cellspacing="0" width="20"> <tbody><tr><td colspan="2" align="left">

</td> <td align="left" width="5">
</td> </tr> <tr> <td class="cap" colspan="2" align="left">David Nabarro, the U.N. secretary-general's senior coordinator on avian human influenza</td></tr></tbody> </table> International medical experts gathered at a United Nations office in Thailand warned Vietnam might face a bird flu outbreak this winter at a meeting with the press Friday.

Vietnam and several other countries in the Asia-Pacific region were under threat from an avian influenza recurrence.

​

Though the situation was under control on a global scale, a comprehensive plan was necessary for preventing the disease, they warned.

​

Laurence J.Gleesen, Regional Manager of the Food and Agriculture Organization (FAO)?s Emergency Center for Transboundary Disease Control, warned that the deadly H5N1 strain thrived best in winter.

​

She praised Vietnam for ?excellently? checking the spread of the disease and keeping down human infections to the ?lowest level? possible.

​

In 2003-2005, Vietnam reported 92 human infections of which 43 died. Since November 2005, the country has not reported any new human cases though the epidemic has returned in several places.

​

According to World Health Organization statistics, 151 have died of bird flu worldwide, with Indonesia the worst sufferer with 55 fatalities.

​

Reported by Thuc Minh ? Translated by Hoang Bao ​