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World not ready for mass flu outbreak

Agence France-PresseMay 21, 2013 20:30
The world is unprepared for a massive virus outbreak, the deputy chief of the World Health Organization warned Tuesday, amid fears that H7N9 bird flu striking China could morph into a form that spreads easily among people. Keiji Fukuda told delegates at a WHO meeting that despite efforts since an outbreak of another form of avian influenza, H1N1, in 2009-10, far more contingency planning was essential. "Even though work has been done since that time, the world is not ready for a large, severe outbreak," Fukuda said.

H7N9 bird flu outbreak costs more than $6.5 billion so far -U.N

May 21, 2013 17:46
GENEVA (Reuters) - The H7N9 bird flu outbreak in China has caused economic losses of more than $6.5 billion so far, the U.N. Food and Agriculture Organization's chief veterinary officer said on Tuesday. "The economic impacts of H7N9 have been astounding," Juan Lubroth said during a presentation at the World Health Assembly in Geneva. "Over $6.5 billion has been lost in the agriculture sector because of prices, consumer confidence and trade. So poultry industry losses in China have been high," he said.

World not ready if flu outbreak strikes

Agence France-PresseMay 21, 2013 14:15
The globe remains unprepared to deal with the risk of a massive virus outbreak, the deputy chief of the World Health Organization warned Tuesday, amid fears that H7N9 bird flu striking China could morph into a form that spreads easily among people. Keiji Fukuda told delegates at a WHO meeting that despite efforts since an outbreak of another form of avian influenza, H1N1, in 2009-10, far more contingency planning was essential. "Even though work has been done since that time, the world is not ready for a large, severe outbreak," Fukuda said.

No new H7N9 cases in China for a week

Agence France-PresseMay 20, 2013 22:15
No new human cases of the H7N9 virus have been recorded in China for a week, national health authorities said, for the first time since the outbreak began in March. One previously infected patient died in the week beginning May 13, the National Health and Family Planning Commission said in a statement late Monday, taking the total number of fatalities from the virus to 36.

China reports three new bird flu deaths, toll hits 35

May 13, 2013 10:15
BEIJING (Reuters) - Three more people have died in China from the new strain of H7N9 bird flu virus, raising the death toll to 35 while the total number of infections rose to 130, state media said on Monday. Without giving details of the deaths, Xinhua news agency said a new case of the H7N9, described by the World Health Organization as one of the most lethal flu viruses around, was found in China's east Jiangxi province.

Canada not planning H7N9 bird flu vaccine studies; will watch US results: PHAC

The Canadian PressMay 9, 2013 19:46
TORONTO - Canada currently has no plans to ask its pandemic flu vaccine manufacturers to make trial batches of vaccine to protect against the new H7N9 bird flu, senior officials of the Public Health Agency of Canada have revealed. While the U.S. government has said it will ask several of flu vaccine manufacturers to start growing up batches of serum against the new virus this summer, Canada will watch, wait and learn from the work the U.S. does, the officials said in an interview with The Canadian Press.

China reports four more bird flu deaths, toll rises to 31

May 7, 2013 11:12
BEIJING (Reuters) - Four more people in China have died from a new strain of bird flu, bringing to 31 the number of deaths from the mysterious H7N9 virus, with the number of infections rising by two to 129, according to Chinese health authorities. Among the deaths, two occurred in the eastern province of Jiangsu; one was from eastern Zhejiang; while another was from central Anhui, based on a Reuters analysis of the data provided by Chinese health authorities on Monday. The government did not provide more details of the victims.

Countermeasures against H7N9 enforced

Kyodo News InternationalMay 5, 2013 12:38
The government on Monday enforced countermeasures against the H7N9 strain of bird flu, under which patients can be compelled to be hospitalized or to stop working for up to two years. The action is being taken in the face of the rapid spread of the virus in China and at a time when many tourists return home from overseas at the end of Japan's Golden Week holidays from late April to early May, according to the Health, Labor and Welfare Ministry.

Fears for man-made bird flu bug

Agence France-PresseMay 3, 2013 08:15
Immunologists expressed concern Friday about the "dangerous" work of scientists in China who created a hybrid bird flu virus that can spread in the air between guinea pigs, and now lives in a lab freezer. The team from the Chinese Academy of Agricultural Sciences and Gansu Agricultural University wrote in the journal Science they had created a new virus by mixing genes from H5N1 "bird flu" and H1N1 "swine flu".

China reports 27th death from H7N9 bird flu

Agence France-PresseMay 2, 2013 06:01
The death toll from the H7N9 bird flu virus has risen to 27, state media said Thursday after a man died in central China's Hunan Province. The 55-year-old whose surname was given as Jiao died on Wednesday after receiving medical treatment, state news agency Xinhua said, citing local authorities. More than 120 people have been diagnosed with the virus since it was first reported in late March, with most cases confined to eastern China.
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