Posts Tagged influenza a
The Dangers and Concerns of Avian Flu
What is Avian Flu (Bird Flu)
Avian flu is an infection caused by a certain kind of influenza virus. Although there are many kinds of avian flu, the kind that now concerns health workers is the H5N1 avian flu virus. This virus is found in wild birds. Most of the time, wild birds don’t get sick from the virus. However, wild birds can easily pass the virus to birds that are being raised for food, such as chickens, ducks, and turkeys.
What causes avian flu?
People who come into contact with infected chickens, ducks, or turkeys are more likely to get the virus. There have been a few cases where it was passed human to human. The flu virus can be passed through bird droppings and saliva. It can also live on surfaces such as cages, tractors, and other farm equipment. The virus may be transmitted into indoor areas like floors and counter tops by people who come in contact with infected birds. Read the rest of this entry »
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Protecting Your Family from the Avian Flu
Fear of an Avian Flu pandemic has reached epic proportions and with good reason. If it becomes a fully mutated strain that is easily transmittable between humans, the result of this sickness on the human population would be disastrous.
Avian Flu: The Potential Crisis
Currently, the Bird Flu has been affecting Asia and Europe. The rest of the world is keeping a close eye on this illness to make sure that it doesn’t cross any more borders. Avian influenza, though common with wild birds, can devastate domesticated birds swiftly and quickly, completely eradicating all that were infected with the virus. The potential crisis is in the fact that humans do not have built in immunities to this virus. If it mutates and infects humans, they would not be able to fight it off without medical intervention. Since the strain hasn’t mutated yet, there isn’t a medicine that can cure it. The only way we can fight this potential crisis is through prevention. Read the rest of this entry »
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H1N1 Flu – A Pandemic is Declared
The World Health Organization (WHO), on June 11, 2009, raised the worldwide pandemic alert level to Phase 6 in response to the ongoing global spread of the novel influenza A virus. A Phase 6 designation indicates that a global pandemic is underway.
The outbreak of the H1N1 flu (formerly called the Swine flu) has caused much panic amongst the masses. I think it’s ok to be concerned about the situation, but panic is not warranted. Yes, Preparedness to deal with the recent H1N1 flu is good, but preparedness by being ill-informed does not help the situation and this is exactly the sort of thing that creates panic.
What is H1N1 Flu?
I think it’s important to first understand what H1N1 flu really is. The CDC (Centers for Disease Control and Prevention) defines the flu as a respiratory disease of pigs caused by type A influenza viruses that causes regular outbreaks in pigs. People do not normally get H1N1 flu, but human infections can and do happen. H1N1 flu viruses have been reported to spread from person-to-person, but in the past, this transmission was limited and not sustained beyond three people. Read the rest of this entry »
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