Avian Flu Update

The Avian Flu season is with us again, perhaps because this is a season in which birds migrate, carrying the virus with them from country to country.

"Indonesian woman dies from avian flu, death toll up to 62" in the Taipei Times

"Egyptian woman dies of bird flu, country's 11th avian flu death" in The China Post.

"HK on high alert of monitoring bird flu" in People's Daily Online.

Comment: I continue to believe it is just a matter of time until we experience the next flu pandemic. The H1N5 Asian Flu is the most likely candidate to cause that pandemic, and the longer it is with us with the viral population evolving, the more likely that it is to go epidemic. Still, I think it is more likely than not that H1N5 will not be the culprit. In any case, we are somewhat more prepared to deal with an Asian Flu epidemic now than we were a few years ago, which is all to the good.

We should not take our eyes off the huge mortality being caused by AIDS, malaria, TB, and other infectious diseases, but there is an important threat from Avian Flu that we should also prepare to meet. JAD