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Today bird flu is on the tip of everyone's tongues. We all hear about it on the news, in newspapers, from our friends. It has become an everyday utterance; a word that brings worry and fear. However, what most people don't know is the current state of the virus. Is it getting closer to reaching masses of people? Is it only prevalent in other countries? What is the United States doing to prevent this problem? These questions are answers that we constantly are looking for. Luckily, the answers aren't difficult to find.
The most affected areas of the disease are in other countries such as Asia and Africa. These people are constantly in contact with contaminated birds and many feel that the situation will not slow down. However, there are no noted cases that show people transmitting the illness to one another. If one develops the virus, it does not continue on to someone else. Nevertheless, the virus still continues to pose a major threat to struggling countries. It is possible for the virus to change into a virus that does transmit from person to person. This would lead to immediate death or at least have severe consequences. Another fearful point of view is that if the disease did turn into a pandemic, the vaccines would not work well. In places like Vietnam, studies have shown that most patient's have resisted Amantadine; a medicine used to treat many influenza attacks. Luckily there are other medications available which include Oseltamivir; another popular drug in the medical field.
Other countries are also starting to become attacked by the Bird flu. According to the World Organization for Animal Health, there have been hundreds of animal infections in Europe and The Pacific. One hundred million birds have been infected and as a result, have died. These countries are also being affected economically, as many other fellow countries have banned all imported poultry from the virus stricken areas.
Although there are certain vaccines used to treat influenza (including
Amantadine, Rimantadine and Oseltamivir), there are no known treatments available to protect people from the virus seen in Asia. However, in April of 2005
research began looking into further medication and have been trying to develop new vaccines ever since. According to the National Institute of Allergy and Diseases, "fast-track recruitment has begun for a trial to investigate the safety of a vaccine against H5N1 avian influenza." Major cities like Boston and New York have already recruited adults to participate in the test. The only requirement for participants was that each person had to be healthy. This trial will not only test the trial's safety, but will see if immune systems react to the new medication.
With such amazing technology and medical advances, many are confident that Bird Flu will one day be banished forever. Until that day does come, hundreds of professionals in the medical field are trying to come up with trial vaccines and cures. Luckily, in this day and age, the idea of stopping such a pandemic is full of potential. People no longer shake their heads at the thought of it being gone. We should all be thankful that we have the knowledge and determination to find a vaccine for everyone to use.
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