Here are some key questions and facts about bird flu.

What is avian influenza?

* Avian influenza is an infectious disease of birds caused by influenza virus. This disease was first discovered in Italy more than 100 years ago and has occurred all over the world.

* All birds are considered to be susceptible to avian influenza, although some species are more resistant than others.

* Infection can cause a series of symptoms in birds, ranging from mild diseases to highly contagious and rapidly fatal diseases, leading to serious epidemics. The latter is called "highly pathogenic avian influenza". This form is characterized by sudden onset, serious illness and rapid death, and the mortality rate can be close to 100%.

* It is known that there are 15 subtypes of influenza viruses that infect birds, thus providing a wide repository for influenza viruses that may spread among birds.

Is bird flu harmful to human beings?

* Before 1997, the death of human beings from avian influenza was unknown. At that time, six people in Hong Kong died after being infected with H5 n 1 1 virus strain.

However, within three days, all poultry in Hong Kong (about 65,438+500,000) were destroyed, which reduced the chance of further direct transmission to human beings and may have avoided the epidemic.

* In April 2003, a Dutch veterinarian who worked on a farm infected with avian influenza was infected with H7 avian influenza virus and died of pneumonia. Veterinarians did not take anti-avian influenza and human influenza drugs.

Human casualties caused by avian influenza

* Since the end of 2003, 37 Vietnamese have died. The disease also killed 12 Thais and 4 Cambodians.

Will bird flu become a human epidemic?

* Although avian influenza is highly contagious among birds, it is not easy to spread among humans. However, there is a danger that the avian influenza virus will be mixed with the human virus to form a new disease.

* The new virus may share the genetic material of the two viruses, which is as highly contagious as human influenza and as deadly as avian influenza.

* According to a WHO report earlier in May, a large number of human avian influenza cases in Vietnam this year indicate that this deadly virus may be mutating, which is more likely to spread from person to person.

-This discovery points out the biggest concern of health experts, that is, if the H5n1/kloc-0 virus gains the ability to spread effectively among people, it may trigger an epidemic and kill millions of people around the world.

* New influenza virus strains have caused a pandemic. Recently, in 1956- 1957 and 1967- 1968, a total of 4.5 million people died.

The bird flu epidemic is "unlikely"

International health experts say that the expanding bird flu epidemic in Asia is "far from close" and has been declared an epidemic.

"I think at this stage, it is very important for us to remain calm in the worst case," Mike Ryan, WHO's global epidemic response director, said at an international emergency meeting in Rome on Wednesday.

"We are currently dealing with a small number of cases related to contact with poultry," Ryan told reporters.

At the same time, China, after confirming the suspected outbreak of avian influenza in Chenggong County, Yunnan Province, sought to coordinate efforts to contain avian influenza in its vast territory. So far, no one has been reported to be infected with this disease.

On Wednesday, the Ministry of Agriculture announced that there were two more suspected bird flu outbreaks in the region.

These two areas are Guandu District, Kunming, the capital city of Yunnan, and Gaolan County, Gansu Province, northwest of China.

Once suspected cases were found, local governments began to slaughter chickens and carry out compulsory vaccination.

Mao Qunan, a spokesman for the Ministry of Health, said that 588 people who had close contact with infected poultry had been examined and no one was sick, China Daily reported on Wednesday.

As the suspected poultry cases appear in areas thousands of kilometers apart, the central government is seeking a coordinated national response.

A new national bird flu prevention headquarters was established in Beijing, which is responsible for supervising the culling of all sick birds in the region and keeping a close eye on people who have come into contact with sick birds.

The authorities have slaughtered poultry and vaccinated them near the suspected epidemic.

Hundreds of thousands of poultry have been slaughtered and the government is paying compensation to farmers.

According to Beijing Youth Daily, the new regulations stipulate that new poultry houses must be built at least 500 meters away from any poultry house. It is not clear when these regulations will take effect, nor how they will be implemented in a country where many farmers keep chickens in their own yards.

According to Xinhua News Agency, the Ministry of Railways said that birds without quarantine certificates are not allowed to board trains, planes or ships, and must be inspected when entering China.

Chongqing, a western metropolis, has banned the transport of poultry by open trucks, and Shanghai is also cleaning up pigeon droppings in public squares.

Xinhua News Agency said that on the outskirts of Beijing, Badaling Wildlife Park had stopped feeding live chickens to lions and tigers, and instead gave them beef.

About 10 Asian countries and regions are affected by avian influenza virus, and the number of people who died of the disease has risen to about 14. Thousands of chickens were killed to prevent the spread of the disease.

In an interview with Xinhua News Agency on Tuesday, Peter Codingli, spokesman of WHO's Western Pacific Regional Office, said that Asian countries plagued by bird flu should change their lifestyles and raise chickens to prevent and control the virus.

He said that these countries should adopt a healthier and more cautious way to raise and sell chickens.

He said that in Asia, it is very common for farmers to live near chickens and sell live chickens in the market. He said that this proximity has greatly increased the possibility of human infection with bird flu.

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