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Highly pathogenic H5N1
	→  Countries with poultry or wild birds killed by it
	→  Countries with humans, poultry, and wild birds killed by it

H5N1

Influenza A virus subtype H5N1 Genetic structure Infection Global spread Social impact Pandemic

WHO pandemic phases 1. Low risk 2. New virus 3. Self limiting 4. Person to person 5. Epidemic exists 6. Pandemic exists Wikipedia does not have an article with this exact name. ... To suggest a relevant news story for the Main Page, refer to the criteria then add your suggestion at the candidates page. ... Image File history File links Download high resolution version (1357x628, 53 KB) Summary I made this map by using Image:BlankMap-World. ... Image File history File links Colorized_transmission_electron_micrograph_of_Avian_influenza_A_H5N1_viruses. ... Influenzavirus A is a genus of a family of viruses called Orthomyxoviridae in virus classification. ... Influenza A virus subtype H5N1, also known as A(H5N1) or H5N1, is a subtype of the Influenza A virus that is capable of causing illness in many animal species, including humans. ... The H5N1 genetic structure is the structure of the H5N1 virus. ... H5N1 flu refers to the transmission and infection of H5N1. ... The global spread of H5N1 in birds is considered a significant pandemic threat. ... An influenza pandemic is a large scale epidemic of the influenza virus, such as the 1918 Spanish flu. ... An influenza pandemic is a large scale epidemic of the influenza virus, such as the 1918 Spanish flu. ...

See Influenza pandemic for government preparation for an H5N1 pandemic

H5N1 impact is the effect or influence of H5N1 in human society; especially the financial, political, social and personal responses to both actual and predicted deaths in birds, humans, and other animals. An influenza pandemic is a large scale epidemic of the influenza virus, such as the 1918 Spanish flu. ... Influenza A virus subtype H5N1, also known as A(H5N1) or H5N1, is a subtype of the Influenza A virus that is capable of causing illness in many animal species, including humans. ... Trinomial name Homo sapiens sapiens Linnaeus, 1758 Humans, or human beings, are biologically classified as bipedal primates belonging to the mammalian species Homo sapiens (Latin for wise man or thinking man) under the family Hominidae (the great apes). ... Human relationships within an ethnically diverse society. ... Finance addresses the ways in which individuals, business entities and other organizations allocate and use monetary resources over time. ... Politics is the process and method of decision-making for groups of human beings. ... // Latin root meaning The term social is derived from the Latin word socius, which as a noun means an associate, ally, companion, business partner or comrade and in the adjectival form socialis refers to a bond between people (such as marriage) or to their collective or connected existence. ... personal could refer to personal identity; a personal advertisement; an persons ego or self image, interests or goals; a personal problem; personal involvement; a trademark belonging to Sony. ... To meet Wikipedias quality standards, this article or section may require cleanup. ... Orders Many - see section below. ... Trinomial name Homo sapiens sapiens Linnaeus, 1758 Humans, or human beings, are biologically classified as bipedal primates belonging to the mammalian species Homo sapiens (Latin for wise man or thinking man) under the family Hominidae (the great apes). ... Phyla Subregnum Parazoa Porifera (sponges) Subregnum Agnotozoa Placozoa (trichoplax) Orthonectida (orthonectids) Rhombozoa (dicyemids) Subregnum Eumetazoa Radiata (unranked) (radial symmetry) Ctenophora (comb jellies) Cnidaria (coral, jellyfish, anemones) Bilateria (unranked) (bilateral symmetry) Acoelomorpha (basal) Orthonectida (parasitic to flatworms, echinoderms, etc. ...

Billions of dollars are being raised and spent to research H5N1 and prepare for a potential avian flu pandemic. Over ten billion dollars have been lost and over two hundred million birds have been killed to try to contain H5N1. Influenza A virus subtype H5N1, also known as A(H5N1) or H5N1, is a subtype of the Influenza A virus that is capable of causing illness in many animal species, including humans. ... Avian flu is any flu caused by a virus adapted to birds. ... A pandemic (from Greek pan all + demos people) is an epidemic (an outbreak of an infectious disease) that spreads worldwide, or at least across a large region. ... Influenza A virus subtype H5N1, also known as A(H5N1) or H5N1, is a subtype of the Influenza A virus that is capable of causing illness in many animal species, including humans. ...

This, like everything else, is subject to political spin; wherein every interest group picks and chooses among the facts to support their favorite cause resulting in a distortion of the overall picture, the motivations of the people involved and the believability of the predictions. The examples and perspective in this article or section may not represent a worldwide view. ...

People have reacted by buying less chicken causing poultry sales and prices to fall. Many individuals have stockpiled supplies for a possible flu pandemic.

Financial

According to the New York Times, due to the H5N1 threat, as of March 2006: The New York Times is an internationally known daily newspaper published in New York City and distributed in the United States and many other nations worldwide. ... Influenza A virus subtype H5N1, also known as A(H5N1) or H5N1, is a subtype of the Influenza A virus that is capable of causing illness in many animal species, including humans. ...

"governments worldwide have spent billions planning for a potential influenza pandemic: buying medicines, running disaster drills, [and] developing strategies for tighter border controls." ^[1]

On November 1, 2005 President Bush unveiled the National Strategy To Safeguard Against The Danger of Pandemic Influenza ^[2] backed by a request to Congress for $7.1 billion to begin implementing the plan. ^[3] November 1 is the 305th day of the year (306th in leap years) in the Gregorian Calendar, with 60 days remaining. ... 2005 (MMV) was a common year starting on Saturday of the Gregorian calendar. ...

On January 18, 2006 donor nations pledged two billion US dollars to combat bird flu at the two day International Pledging Conference on Avian and Human Influenza held in China. ^[4] Over ten billion dollars have been lost and over two hundred million birds have been killed to try to contain H5N1. ^[5] January 18 is the 18th day of the year in the Gregorian calendar. ... 2006 (MMVI) is a common year starting on Sunday of the Gregorian calendar. ... Influenza A virus subtype H5N1, also known as A(H5N1) or H5N1, is a subtype of the Influenza A virus that is capable of causing illness in many animal species, including humans. ...

Investment strategies are being altered to manage the impact of H5N1. ^[6] This changes the valuations of trillions of dollars worth of stocks worldwide as investors move assets in accordance with both fears and hopes.

Poultry farming practices have changed due to H5N1:

• killing millions of poultry
• vaccinating poultry against bird flu
• vaccinating poultry workers against human flu
• limiting travel in areas where H5N1 is found
• increasing farm hygiene
• reducing contact between livestock and wild birds
• reducing open-air wet markets
• limiting workers contact with cock fighting
• reducing purchases of live fowl
• improving veterinary vaccine availability and cost. ^[7]

For example, after nearly two years of using mainly culling to control the virus, the Vietnam government in 2005 adopted a combination of mass poultry vaccination, disinfecting, culling, information campaigns and bans on live poultry in cities.^[8] Vaccination is the process of administering live, albeit weakened, microbes to patients, with the intent of conferring immunity against a targeted form of a related disease agent. ... Avian influenza (also known as bird flu) is a type of influenza virulent in birds. ... Human Flu refers to a subset of Orthomyxoviridae that create influenza in humans and are endemic in humans. ... Sheep are commonly bred as livestock. ... A live animal market, a common sight in many areas of the world and a source of influenza viruses and other infectious disease agents for human beings. ... To meet Wikipedias quality standards, this article or section may require cleanup. ... A vaccine is an antigenic preparation used to produce active immunity to a disease, in order to prevent or ameliorate the effects of infection by any natural or wild strain of the organism. ... 2005 (MMV) was a common year starting on Saturday of the Gregorian calendar. ...

The cost of poultry farming has increased, while the cost to consumers has gone down due to fears from H5N1 driving demand below supply, resulting in devastating losses for many poultry farmers. Poor poultry farmers can't afford mandated measures keeping their bird livestock from contact with wild birds (and other measures) thus risking losing their livelihood altogether. Multinational poultry farming is increasingly becoming a profit loser as H5N1 achieves status as endemic in wild birds worldwide. ^[9]

Financial ruin for poor poultry farmers, that can be as severe as threatening starvation, has caused some to commit suicide and many others to stop cooperating with efforts to deal with H5N1; further increasing the human toll, the spread of the disease and the chances for a pandemic mutation. ^[10]

Political

"Everything you say in advance of a pandemic is alarmist; anything you do after it starts is inadequate." - US HHS Secretary Michael O. Leavitt ^[11]

H5N1, like everything else, is subject to political spin; wherein every interest group picks and chooses among the facts to support their favorite cause resulting in a distortion of the overall picture, the motivations of the people involved and the believability of the predictions. The United States Department of Health and Human Services, often abbreviated HHS, is a Cabinet department of the United States government with the goal of protecting the health of all Americans and providing essential human services. ... Michael O. Leavitt Michael Okerlund Leavitt (born February 11, 1951 in Cedar City, Utah) is an American, and is currently the Secretary of Health and Human Services. ... The examples and perspective in this article or section may not represent a worldwide view. ...

Claims are advanced that there is massive media misrepresentations concerning H5N1, that there is profiteering on risky and valueless vaccines, that genetic studies breed mutant flu viruses that are likely to outbreak, that there are inside trading scandals involving the White House and drug industry officials, that pharmaceutical entities are profiteering, even that a physician-assisted mass murder is being planned to serve economic and political depopulation objectives. ^[12]

Donald Rumsfeld, currently serving as the United States Secretary of Defense, is the major stockholder of Gilead Sciences which owns intellectual property rights to Oseltamivir (also called "Tamiflu"). In November 2005, George W. Bush urged Congress to pass 7.1 billion in emergency funding to prepare for the possible bird flu pandemic, of which one billion is solely dedicated to the purchase, and distribution of Tamiflu. Donald Henry Rumsfeld (born July 9, 1932) is currently serving as the 21st United States Secretary of Defense, since January 20, 2001, under President George W. Bush. ... Seal of the United States Department of Defense The United States Secretary of Defense is the head of the United States Department of Defense, concerned with the armed services and The Secretary is appointed by the President with the approval of the Senate, and is a member of the Cabinet. ... Gilead Sciences NASDAQ: GILD is a biopharmaceutical company that discovers, develops and commercializes therapeutics to advance the care of patients suffering from life-threatening diseases, principally HIV, hepatitis B and influenza. ... In law, particularly in common law jurisdictions, intellectual property is a form of legal entitlement which allows its holder to control the use of certain intangible ideas and expressions. ... Oseltamivir (INN) (IPA: ) is an antiviral drug used in the treatment and prophylaxis of both Influenzavirus A and Influenzavirus B. Like zanamivir, oseltamivir is a neuraminidase inhibitor. ...

Believers in Antoine Bechamp, homeopathy, and other alternative medicines widely disbelieve mass media reports sourced from conventional medicine and governments. To meet Wikipedias quality standards, this article or section may require cleanup. ... It has been suggested that Classical homeopathy be merged into this article or section. ... It has been suggested that Complementary and alternative medicine be merged into this article or section. ... Mass media is a term used to denote, as a class, that section of the media specifically conceived and designed to reach a very large audience (typically at least as large as the whole population of a nation state). ... See drugs, medication, and pharmacology for substances that treat patients. ...

Some believe The deadly H5N1 strain of bird flu is essentially a problem of industrial poultry practices. ^[13]

Others have a more nuanced position. According to the CDC article H5N1 Outbreaks and Enzootic Influenza by Robert G. Webster et. al.:"Transmission of highly pathogenic H5N1 from domestic poultry back to migratory waterfowl in western China has increased the geographic spread. The spread of H5N1 and its likely reintroduction to domestic poultry increase the need for good agricultural vaccines. In fact, the root cause of the continuing H5N1 pandemic threat may be the way the pathogenicity of H5N1 viruses is masked by cocirculating influenza viruses or bad agricultural vaccines."^[14] Dr. Robert Webster explains: "If you use a good vaccine you can prevent the transmission within poultry and to humans. But if they have been using vaccines now [in China] for several years, why is there so much bird flu? There is bad vaccine that stops the disease in the bird but the bird goes on pooping out virus and maintaining it and changing it. And I think this is what is going on in China. It has to be. Either there is not enough vaccine being used or there is substandard vaccine being used. Probably both. It’s not just China. We can’t blame China for substandard vaccines. I think there are substandard vaccines for influenza in poultry all over the world." ^[15] In response to the same concerns, Reuters reports Hong Kong infectious disease expert Lo Wing-lok saying, "The issue of vaccines has to take top priority," and Julie Hall, in charge of the WHO's outbreak response in China, saying China's vaccinations might be masking the virus." ^[16] The BBC reported that Dr Wendy Barclay, a virologist at the University of Reading, UK said: "The Chinese have made a vaccine based on reverse genetics made with H5N1 antigens, and they have been using it. There has been a lot of criticism of what they have done, because they have protected their chickens against death from this virus but the chickens still get infected; and then you get drift - the virus mutates in response to the antibodies - and now we have a situation where we have five or six 'flavours' of H5N1 out there." ^[17] CDC is an acronym which can mean any of the following: California Department of Corrections Canadian Dairy Commission Career Development Course Cell Division Cycle Centers for Disease Control and Prevention Century Date Change in reference to the Y2K bug. ...

Keeping wild birds away from domestic birds is known to be key in the fight against H5N1. Caging (no free range poultry) is one one way. Providing wild birds with restored wetlands so they naturally choose nonlivestock areas is another way that helps accomplish this. Political forces are increasingly demanding the selection of one, the other, or both based on nonscientific reasons.^[18]

And, of course, there is the inevitable tax lobbying. It seems that whatever happens, someone somewhere claims a need for a tax exemption because of it. An example illustrating this it the May 7, 2006 report from India E-News that: "Pakistani poultry farmers have sought a 10-year tax exemption to support their dwindling business after the detection of the H5N1 strain of bird flu triggered a fall in demand and prices, a poultry trader said. We have asked the government to give us tax exemption on income from the poultry business for at least 10 years to meet losses caused by the bird flu scare, Abdul Basit told DPA. Basit, vice president of the Chamber of Commerce and Industry (LCCI) in the country’s commercial hub of Lahore, was part of a delegation of the Pakistan Poultry Association, which met food ministry officials to present their demand. The federal poultry board of the food ministry is to meet on May 9 to consider the tax-cut demand for the poultry business in the upcoming national budget due in mid-June."^[19]

Social

Reuters reported that WHO expert Hassan al-Bushra said: Reuters Group plc LSE: RTR NASDAQ: RTRSY is best known as a news service that provides reports from around the world to newspapers and broadcasters. ... Who can refer to: WHO, World Health Organization The Who, a British rock band The Guess Who, a Canadian rock band who (pronoun), an English language interrogative pronoun. ...

"Even now, we remain unsure about Tamiflu's real effectiveness. As for a vaccine, work cannot start on it until the emergence of a new virus, and we predict it would take six to nine months to develop it. For the moment, we cannot by any means count on a potential vaccine to prevent the spread of a contagious influenza virus, whose various precedents in the past 90 years have been highly pathogenic. However, it is crucial that countries in the Middle East invest and start developing their own research and technical facilities, where they can produce their own drugs when the time comes rather than wait to import expensive medicines from abroad at the risk of their population." ^[20]

If a pandemic occurs, local response will be more important than national or international response, as every community will have its own resources swamped dealing with its own problems. ^[21] International groups, nations, local governments, corporations, schools, and groups of all kinds have made plans and run drills to alleviate the H5N1 impact. Tamiflu manufactured by ROCHE active principle Oseltamivir Phosphate Drug Nomenclature Synonyms: GS-4104/002; Oseltamivir, fosfato de; Ro-64-0796/002 USAN: Oseltamivir Phosphate rINNM: Oseltamivir Phosphate erINNM: Fosfato de oseltamivir Chemical name: Ethyl (3R,4R,5S)-4-acetamido-5-amino-3-(1-ethylpropoxy)-1-cyclohexene-1-carboxylate phosphate (1... A vaccine is an antigenic preparation used to produce active immunity to a disease, in order to prevent or ameliorate the effects of infection by any natural or wild strain of the organism. ...

On line avian flu forums have received increasing attention. ^[22] Self help groups have organized to provide news and information about resources, aid and relief efforts in preparation for avian flu. ^[23]

British reports warn that in response to an influenza pandemic local groups will not be able to rely on the armed forces, widespread infection could occur in days not months, an effective vaccine can not be counted on, and the huge death toll could swamp mortuaries so "A key point for local planning is likely to be the identification of potential sites for the location of facilities for the temporary storage of bodies". ^[24] An influenza pandemic is a large scale epidemic of the influenza virus, such as the 1918 Spanish flu. ...

Personal

Many individuals have stockpiled supplies (Tamiflu, food, water, etc) for a possible flu pandemic. ^[25]

Individuals have started web sites and companies using interest and ignorance in H5N1 to sell information, cures, and advertizing space. Some even use concern over H5N1 to find victims for their malware. ^[26] Malware is software designed to infiltrate or damage a computer system, without the owners consent. ...

A significant impact of H5N1 has been personal fear concerning the unknown, even by those most in-the-know. Dr. David Nabarro, chief avian flu coordinator for the United Nations, describes himself as "quite scared"; says avian flu has too many unanswered questions; and if the disease starts spreading to humans, borders will close, airports will shut down, and travelers everywhere will be stranded. ^[27] With evaluations of the threat ranging from those who say it is a hoax to those who warn of billions of humans dying, uncertainty and fear motivate personal behaviors around the world causing a vast impact even before the threat becomes reality.

Compared to annual flu season

Main article: Flu season

The annual flu season deaths and costs caused by viruses other than H5N1 provide a point of contrast - something to compare against. According to the United States Government, the annual flu in the United States: Flu season is mostly a colloquial term used to describe the regular outbreak in flu cases, or even cases of the common cold during the late fall or winter. ... Influenza A virus subtype H5N1, also known as A(H5N1) or H5N1, is a subtype of the Influenza A virus that is capable of causing illness in many animal species, including humans. ...

"results in approximately 36,000 deaths and more than 200,000 hospitalizations each year. In addition to this human toll, influenza is annually responsible for a total cost of over $10 billion in the United States. A pandemic, or worldwide outbreak of a new influenza virus, could dwarf this impact by overwhelming our health and medical capabilities, potentially resulting in hundreds of thousands of deaths, millions of hospitalizations, and hundreds of billions of dollars in direct and indirect costs." ^[28]

The New England Journal of Medicine reported that: "A study by the Congressional Budget Office estimates that the consequences of a severe pandemic could, in the United States, include 200 million people infected, 90 million clinically ill, and 2 million dead. The study estimates that 30 percent of all workers would become ill and 2.5 percent would die, with 30 percent of workers missing a mean of three weeks of work — resulting in a decrease in the gross domestic product of 5 percent. Furthermore, 18 million to 45 million people would require outpatient care, and economic costs would total approximately $675 billion." ^[29] The New England Journal of Medicine (NEJM) is a peer-reviewed medical journal published by the Massachusetts Medical Society with the highest impact factor for a general medical journal. ...

See also

• Bird Flu In India
• Fatal Contact: Bird Flu in America (2006 movie)
• Influenza Genome Sequencing Project
• International Partnership on Avian and Pandemic Influenza

// Initial reaction The first reports of bird flu in India came from the village of Nawapur in the Nandurbar district of Maharashtra on 19th February 2006. ... The Influenza Genome Sequencing Project is funded by the National Institute of Allergy and Infectious Diseases (NIAID) which is a component of the National Institutes of Health (NIH), which is an agency of the United States Department of Health and Human Services. ... President George W. Bush announced the International Partnership on Avian and Pandemic Influenza in his remarks to the High-Level Plenary Meeting of the United Nations General Assembly on September 14, 2005, in New York. ...

Sources

1. ^ NYT
2. ^ Whitehouse.gov
3. ^ State.gov
4. ^ Newswire
5. ^ MSNBC US AID
6. ^ BMO Financial Group
7. ^ Council on Foreign Relations
8. ^ Reuters article Vietnam to unveil advanced plan to fight bird flu published on April 28, 2006
9. ^ Poultry sector suffers despite absence of bird flu
10. ^ Reuters article Cambodian ostracised for reporting bird flu published on April 12, 2006. Reuters article Nine poultry farmers commit suicide in flu-hit India published on April 12, 2006. New York Times article In the Nile Delta, Bird Flu Preys on Ignorance and Poverty published on April 13, 2006.
11. ^ Virginia Pandemic Influenza Summit informs community partners about pandemic influenza plans at the national and state level
12. ^ The Avian Flu Fright: Politically Timed for Global "Iatrogenocide"
13. ^ Grain international, non-profit foundation BBC news CNN
14. ^ CDC H5N1 Outbreaks and Enzootic Influenza by Robert G. Webster et. al.
15. ^ MSNBC quoting Reuters quoting Robert G. Webster
16. ^ Reuters
17. ^ BBC Bird flu vaccine no silver bullet 22 February 2006
18. ^ Breitbart News article Key West Chickens Raise Bird Flu Fears published April 13, 2006. Todau on line article Restoring wetlands key to curbing bird flu: UN published April 13, 2006.
19. ^ India eNews article Pakistani poultry industry demands 10-year tax holiday published May 7, 2006
20. ^ Reuters article MIDDLE EAST: Interview with WHO experts Hassan al-Bushra and John Jabbour 02 Apr 2006 11:00:04 GMT
21. ^ "Any community that fails to prepare with the expectation the federal government will come to the rescue will be tragically wrong." - US HHS
22. ^ Avian flu forum
23. ^ Avian flu help
24. ^ Scotsman NewsReport on leaked British study.
25. ^ Flu Terminator
26. ^ The Register
27. ^ NYT article picked up by IHT
28. ^ Message from President Bush
29. ^ New England Journal of MedicineVolume 354:1411-1413 - March 30, 2006 - Number 13 - Vaccines against Avian Influenza — A Race against Time