Guest guest Posted December 11, 2008 Report Share Posted December 11, 2008 Well, it is H5N1, according to the latest information: http://www.etaiwannews.com/etn/news_content.php?id=810869 & lang=eng_news Hong Kong confirms H5N1 bird flu at farm Fertilized eggs smuggled from mainland China might be the cause, say traders Hong Kong yesterday confirmed an outbreak of the highly pathogenic H5N1 bird flu on a chicken farm, while pledging to investigate claims that smuggled eggs from mainland China might be the cause. The H5N1 outbreak near the border with the mainland, which led to the culling of tens of thousands of chickens, was the city's first farm outbreak in five years despite mass vaccination of the birds, raising fears that the virus may have mutated. " It has been confirmed as H5N1, " said a government spokeswoman citing an Assistant Director of the Agriculture, Fisheries and Conservation Department, Sit. Since the H5N1 virus resurfaced in Asia in 2003, it has killed more than 200 people in a dozen countries, according to the World Health organization. Experts fear the constantly mutating H5N1 virus could change into a form easily transmitted from person to person and potentially kill millions worldwide. Chicken traders who have been hit by a three-week import ban on live chickens have claimed fertilized eggs smuggled from mainland China in contravention of Hong Kong's strict bird flu control measures may be spreading the disease. Hong Kong's health chief said inspections of local farms had revealed nothing suspicious, but pledged to investigate. " If some industry people are doing this it would be extremely inappropriate and irresponsible. If people have evidence I hope they can provide these details so we can follow up, " said Health Secretary York Chow. " We aren't ruling out any possibilities, though the H5N1 source is not likely to have come from inside the farm but to have come from outside, " said Chow. " But what caused the infection, be it chicks or eggs ... or workers, we still have to check up on this. " Hong Kong now has farms, including the one affected, which are allowed to import fertilized eggs from China to breed their own chicks. But some bird flu experts played down the possibility of live chicken embryos in such eggs being a potential undetected mode of transmission. " It is very unlikely that the eggs would be infected with H5N1. Chickens that contract H5N1 would almost certainly stop laying eggs, " said Leo Poon, a microbiologist from the University of Hong Kong. Poon did not however rule out the possibility that the surfaces of eggs may be tainted with faeces containing the virus due to environmental contamination. Hong Kong has so far culled over 75,000 chickens at the affected farm and a wholesale market since Tuesday, with further precautionary culling in the vicinity of the stricken farm. > > H5, possibly H5N1. As far as we know it is still strictly an avian > influenza but the Hong Kong authorities are taking it seriously of > course. At least 200 birds have died. Besides slaughtering tens of > thousands more, they admit that they don't understand how the sick > birds got infected in the first place since many of the dead birds had > been vaccinated against H5. They think, reasonably enough, that the > virus might have mutated to make itself resistant to the vaccine. > Funny how that always seems to happen when you go wild with > vaccinations. > > The scary thing about any bird flu occurrences in Hong Kong is that it > is in a major international nexus of transportation and commerce, with > thousands of flights leaving the country every day. This is not a > remote island in Indonesia. So, if the virus suddenly goes seriously > H2H here, chances are it will be in your home town by the time you > read that a pandemic has begun. > > http://www.thestandard.com.hk/breaking_news_detail.asp?id=10795 & icid=3 & d_str=200\ 81210 > > Results to reveal how flu beat vaccine > > Experts are awaiting test results that will reveal which bird flu > strain is responsible for killing about 200 chickens on a farm in Yuen > Long. > > There are widespread fears that the anti-bird flu vaccine being used > by poultry farmers in the area had become obsolete due to the mutation > of the virus. > > Microbiologist Yuen Kwok-yung believes a new vaccine may be needed. > > Meanwhile, government workers in full protective gear pressed ahead > with culling of remaining chickens in the Yuen Long farms and Cheung > Sha Wan wholesale market. > > On the mainland, a health ministry spokesman did not rule out the > possibility of human beings contracting the bird flu in the coming year. > Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Guest guest Posted December 11, 2008 Report Share Posted December 11, 2008 BTW, this is the first time I have heard that the virus can be passed from hen to egg. Does this mean that eating raw eggs could give you the disease? Or does it need to enter through the respiratory system to get it? I suspect the latter but I am not certain. > > > > H5, possibly H5N1. As far as we know it is still strictly an avian > > influenza but the Hong Kong authorities are taking it seriously of > > course. At least 200 birds have died. Besides slaughtering tens of > > thousands more, they admit that they don't understand how the sick > > birds got infected in the first place since many of the dead birds had > > been vaccinated against H5. They think, reasonably enough, that the > > virus might have mutated to make itself resistant to the vaccine. > > Funny how that always seems to happen when you go wild with > > vaccinations. > > > > The scary thing about any bird flu occurrences in Hong Kong is that it > > is in a major international nexus of transportation and commerce, with > > thousands of flights leaving the country every day. This is not a > > remote island in Indonesia. So, if the virus suddenly goes seriously > > H2H here, chances are it will be in your home town by the time you > > read that a pandemic has begun. > > > > > http://www.thestandard.com.hk/breaking_news_detail.asp?id=10795 & icid=3 & d_str=200\ 81210 > > > > Results to reveal how flu beat vaccine > > > > Experts are awaiting test results that will reveal which bird flu > > strain is responsible for killing about 200 chickens on a farm in Yuen > > Long. > > > > There are widespread fears that the anti-bird flu vaccine being used > > by poultry farmers in the area had become obsolete due to the mutation > > of the virus. > > > > Microbiologist Yuen Kwok-yung believes a new vaccine may be needed. > > > > Meanwhile, government workers in full protective gear pressed ahead > > with culling of remaining chickens in the Yuen Long farms and Cheung > > Sha Wan wholesale market. > > > > On the mainland, a health ministry spokesman did not rule out the > > possibility of human beings contracting the bird flu in the coming year. > > > Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
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