What Ever Happened with the Bird Flu?

Do you remember back in 2005 and 2006, you’d turn on the news and see people wearing masks to go shopping or while talking to the teller at the bank? We we’re all told we were about to suffer a huge pandemic and possibly millions would die. Traveler’s from Asian countries were under increased surveillance and people with simple coughs and colds came to the ER to be check for bird flu, after watching the news on TV.
The H5N1 strain of the Avian Influenza that blazed through Asia showed an alarming ability to cross over and infect humans, with a high fatality rate, especially in the old and young. The sensational headlines had labs scrambling to study the virus. Governmental agencies and private researchers coordinated their efforts, and a national pandemic strategy was announced in the United States. It’s now March 2009, and there has been little in the mainstream media. So . . . . . . What ever happened?

The short answer is NO. The United Nations, the World Bank, and th CDC remain worried. According to Michael Osterholm, director of the Center for In­fectious Disease Research and Policy at the University of Minnesota, “We are going to have another pandemic. It will occur. It’s something we can’t emphasize enough.” U.N. and World Bank agree, and advises bird flu preparedness, further stating that current risks are as high as in mid-2005.

Researchers have made progress in understanding the H5N1 virus and have created new vaccines. Other possible treatments are also being researched such as using harvesting antibodies from survivors. In the United States however, some worry that if a wave of Avian Influenza hits us, there won’t be enough tubing, blood bags, and needles for basic supportive care. The good news is that with only less than 500 cases of avian flu and under 300 deaths reported worldwide since 2003, there is still time to prepare. Hmm, so what about the killer bees?!