Review
English
Nagat Bousifi
Infectious Department, Central Hospital,Tripoli, Libya
JMJ 2007,Vol.7, No.4:238-243
Abstract
Aim: A review of the avian influenza A/H5N1 virus, including human cases, viral transmission, clinical features, therapy, prevention, and infection control. Summary: The World Health Organization (WHO) considers the avian Influenza A/H5N1 virus a public health risk with pandemic potential. Outbreaks in poultry have been associated with human transmission. The WHO has documented 278 confirmed human infections with a mortality rate of about 60%. Bird-to-human transmission of the avian Influenza virus is likely by the oral-faecal route. It is estimated that a mortality rate of more than a hundred million will result the from the H5N1 pandemic. The most effective defence against an influenza pandemic would be a directed vaccine to elicit a specific immune response towards the strain or strains of the influenza virus. Conclusion: Avian Influenza virus A/H5N1 is a public health threat that has the potential to cause serious illness and death in humans. Understanding its pathology, transmission, clinical features, and pharmacologic treatments and preparing for the prevention and management of its outbreak will help avoid a threatened pandemic.
Keywords: Avian flu, Influenza A, A/H5N1,Vaccine, Oseltamivir, Pandemics
Link/DOI: http://www.jmj.org.ly/modules.php?name=News&file=article&sid=1424