Bird flu scare: Human spread?

[rcne]

http://edition.cnn.com/2006/HEALTH/c...flu/index.html

(CNN) -- The World Health Organization says a cluster of bird flu cases in Indonesia may have been caused by human-to-human transmission. An outbreak of bird flu that infected at least seven Indonesian family members earlier this month in north Sumatra was not a mutated version of the often deadly H5N1 form of the virus, World Health Organization spokesman Peter Cordingley told CNN. However, there were concerns the virus may have been spread by human-to-human contact, he said. "We have not had a cluster as large as this -- seven people in an extended family," Cordingley said.

Here it comes..........

[Scribbler1]

The most frightening thing about this is the government says it's going to be ready for it.

[brien]

Quote by: rcne http://edition.cnn.com/2006/HEALTH/c...flu/index.html Here it comes..........

Yeah, I read an article about who were the priority groups for first vaccinations. It read like the average citizen was dead last on the ladder. Get ready for riots if this thing spins out of control.

[dreamer]

In england told nothing so we might be one of those groups that doesn't get anything. what ever that means? sad realy that we are not told what could happen all over the world if we all start coffing, snezzing, is it that dangers no one told us where we live.

[Scribbler1]

The news this AM said 6-7 people in the same family in Indonesia died from bird flu and they suspected it was the mutated, human-to-human kind. Tonight on the radio I hear that's not the case. Perhaps unnecessary panic will do more damage than this flu bug.

[Samildanach]

Im gonna take up smoking...if I dont do it now I might not have time later on....

[Kite]

Time to toke up.
I'm not worried. I live in a small rural community, and its only supposed to be deadly to the elderly and children and those with weakened immune systems. I am none of the above.
Also

Quote by: rcne http://edition.cnn.com/2006/HEALTH/c...flu/index.html (CNN) -- The World Health Organization says a cluster of bird flu cases in Indonesia may have been caused by human-to-human transmission. An outbreak of bird flu that infected at least seven Indonesian family members earlier this month in north Sumatra was not a mutated version of the often deadly H5N1 form of the virus, World Health Organization spokesman Peter Cordingley told CNN. However, there were concerns the virus may have been spread by human-to-human contact, he said. "We have not had a cluster as large as this -- seven people in an extended family," Cordingley said. Here it comes..........

[Technosoul]

It would seem to me that the fear being advocated by the W.H.O. is not well founded, apparently the family of relatives could have been exposed to the same bird, or birds that had the virus, which makes more sense because the virus was not mutated to suggest that it could be spread by humans.

The biggest fear is that if it spreads then a lot of turkey and chicken farmers would loose their products and chicken is one of the basic meats used by consumers. Also rare birds at the Zoo would be endangered.

As the birds fly north for the summer we will find out how bad the germ is cirulated on a global scale.

However the science (in my opinon) still indicates that it would be rare for the virus to be able to mutate such that it could be tranferred by humans.

However if anyone is concerned the best opion would not be to depend on shots from a doctor (that may or may not stop the infection). The best option is to stock up on water and food so that you can isolate your self in your house until the "flu-season" passes for your local area, and be prepared to have a few bucks put aside to pay your importantant bills while in isolation.

[rcne]

Now if you don't report it it don't occur - right.

http://news.bbc.co.uk/2/hi/science/nature/5034276.stm

I've been wondering about Iran - they had a case then all went silent. If it continues to mutate - and it will - then these clusters will expand.

Then generational aspects of the virus and the random mutations occur quickly. It only takes one in a populated area to fulfill the Darwinian survival of the fittest.

[Geneveve Allen]

I hope this will never reach at the stage where people starts to panic

[Paramonkey]

I hope this will never reach at the stage where people starts to panic

Here in the UK, for all intents and purposes panic is a good idea when bird flu hits our shores

The simple fact is the NHS will not cope.

For the sheer number of cases we will experience in London, due to its density in population the amount of medical help is hopelessly small.

For example our station covers an area of a couple of square miles, we have 5 ambulances and 2 Rapid Response Paramedics to cover it, which aint going to be enough.
And if you somehow reach hospital you'll be damned if you find a bed. There are very few ICU beds, and a limited amount of general ward beds.
If you die there’s also not enough mortuaries to cater for the increased "demand" so you will be backed and waiting up even after you are dead..

As for drugs, as you've probably heard key workers will receive a vaccine, which is great except it hasn’t been synthesised to the prospective bird flu virus, since it doesn’t exist yet, which makes it as useful as the doctor giving us a lolly-pop and telling us to be on our merry way man-handling the infected.

If it does come, my advice is to move to a rural area (possibly Wales) and hide until a clever drugs company comes up with a vaccine and charges us sky-high prices for it, making us alive, but poor.

[Milton Bradley]

I think the bir flue may be a synthetic in origin.


In Crossing the Rubicon, it comes out ( uncontested so far ) that the sudden appearance of West Nile Virus in the US a few years back was a slip up by the Emergency Management Agency doing an exercise in Chicago.


Wouldn't surprise me at all to find out this sudden appearance of a sinister bird flu was similar except that it was quite possibly synthetic. It's worth thinking about anyway.