Pandemic Flu

Today’s society has been confronted with new waves of viruses and bacteria that have been proven to be much more dangerous that people think. The viruses seem to be able to mutate in a way that makes it impossible to come up with vaccines and treatments in short time after the start of an outbreak. The avian flu was one of the types of infections that had the potential to cause a pandemic.

A pandemic is an epidemic that has reached the various corners of the world and which seems to be unstoppable. The avian flu is an illness caused by a strain of the H5N1 virus, a particular type of influenza A viruses. The virus could be transmitted easily from birds to birds through the direct or indirect contact with the bodily fluids of an infected bird. The potential of the avian flu to become a pandemic is quite high because the virus is easily transmitted through the migratory birds and even through birds that are being smuggled. Nevertheless, an increased role in the transmission of the disease is played by the waterfowl, meaning birds such as swans and wild ducks that have been shown to be carriers of the virus.

The potential of outbreak at the pandemic level has however been reduced through the development of vaccines. Farmers are nowadays obliged to vaccinate their birds in order to make sure that a new outbreak will not start. This happens in particular in Southern Asia as this region is thought to be most at risk for developing an outbreak. It is estimated that thanks to the vaccination initiatives the number of outbreaks around the world has decreased from 65 in 2006 to 11 in 2008. Past outbreaks have been declared as pandemics and have led to killing millions of birds as a way to prevent the disease from spreading.