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CJ Cregg Commodore
Joined: 05 Oct 2002 Posts: 1254
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Sun Jan 22, 2006 8:19 am Bird Virus Fears In France |
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Quote: | Bird Virus Fears In France
Updated: 12:58, Sunday January 22, 2006
Doctors suspect a woman in France has been infected with bird flu, reports claim.
The French health ministry said a 32-year-old who recently returned from Turkey was being treated at a hospital in Montpellier.
Medics tested her for signs of the deadly H5N1 strain and the results are expected later today.
Turkey has confirmed 21 human H5N1 infections, including four deaths.
Outbreaks in poultry have been reported across the country, including areas just miles away from Armenia, Iran, Iraq, Syria and Georgia.
The virus - that jumps from birds to humans - has killed at least 79 people in east Asia and Turkey since 2003.
Experts fear the virus could mutate into a form spread easily among humans, triggering a pandemic capable of killing millions.
The latest alert in France follows confirmation by the World Health Organisation that avian flu killed two children in Indonesia last week. |
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Birdy Socialist
Joined: 20 Sep 2004 Posts: 13502 Location: Here.
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Sun Jan 22, 2006 8:25 am |
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Noooooooooooo! Omg! That's almost next door for me! Man, this is baaaaaaaaaaaaad...!
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Nosce te ipsum
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jonathan95 Delta Prime
Joined: 29 Oct 2002 Posts: 1544 Location: UK Newcastle
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Sun Jan 22, 2006 10:32 am |
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yer I so KNOW what you mean I am only over the sea from france,
I mean if it hits england then its going to hit us hard,
the nock on efect to the econamy here will be bad, just like the mad cow out break we had not so long ago.
I so hope something's done to make sure it does'nt come here to England,
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Birdy Socialist
Joined: 20 Sep 2004 Posts: 13502 Location: Here.
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Sun Jan 22, 2006 10:43 am |
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^ Exactly.
Well, our prime minister isn't that forthcoming yet, he hasn't done very much to keep the virus from our country. I wonder what will happen, and I really hope he'll get into action if the women in France indeed has the virus. Otherwise, we're screwed!
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Nosce te ipsum
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IntrepidIsMe Pimp Handed
Joined: 14 Jun 2002 Posts: 13057 Location: New York
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Sun Jan 22, 2006 12:10 pm |
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Yeah, something like three kids in Turkey died a week or so ago from the avian flu. It's actually pretty interesting if you read up on flu pandemics. But I suppose it's scary, too.
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"Nelly, I am Heathcliff! He's always, always in my mind: not as a pleasure, any more than I am always a pleasure to myself, but as my own being."
-Wuthering Heights
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madlilnerd Duchess of Dancemat
Joined: 03 Aug 2004 Posts: 5885 Location: Slough, England
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Mon Jan 23, 2006 4:36 pm |
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There's going to be a cull, like they had when we got hit by foot and mouth disease. Thousand of farm animals were slaughtered and burnt. Hundreds of farmers were ruined.
They're taking in the free range birds now, but I think there should be stronger measures. Turkey should close it's borders.
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jonathan95 Delta Prime
Joined: 29 Oct 2002 Posts: 1544 Location: UK Newcastle
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Mon Jan 23, 2006 7:33 pm |
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madlilnerd wrote: | There's going to be a cull, like they had when we got hit by foot and mouth disease. Thousand of farm animals were slaughtered and burnt. Hundreds of farmers were ruined.
They're taking in the free range birds now, but I think there should be stronger measures. Turkey should close it's borders. |
I remember the last cull,
one of my distant relitives was afected by it.
but I hope they do something I dont thin kthis country as a whole could take another farm killer like this,
after the last foot in mouth loads of farms give up and closed.
if it deos result in this I hope the government gives more support this time unlike last time.
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Cathexis The Angel of Avalon
Joined: 26 Dec 2001 Posts: 5901 Location: ~~ Where Dreams Have No End�
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Mon Jan 23, 2006 7:50 pm |
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OMG, Noooo!!!!
My precious homeland is under attack, and here I am sitting 3,000 miles away.....can't Spring get here any faster??
I'm going over there in April......
This is so not good. I hope they can isolate and bar it from spreading!!
*frightened*
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webtaz99 Commodore
Joined: 13 Nov 2003 Posts: 1229 Location: The Other Side
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Tue Jan 24, 2006 4:54 pm |
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The sad truth is that the bird flu WILL be nearly everywhere, because it already is. Our only hope is to improve our methods of producing vaccines quickly and in large quantity, before it mutates. We won't know exactly what virus to stop until it starts spreading.
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"History is made at night! Character is who you are in the dark." (Lord John Whorfin)
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madlilnerd Duchess of Dancemat
Joined: 03 Aug 2004 Posts: 5885 Location: Slough, England
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Wed Jan 25, 2006 3:19 pm |
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Border control and customs needs to be stricter. Poultry and poultry products should now be a no-no in the exportation catorgory. No birds go in or out of any country.
Australia was working against the bird flu virus by using sniffer dogs at the airports to detect poultry products. A lot of chinese people were trying to bring moon cakes into the country, but they all got seized because the contain a egg yolk whole.
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Birdy Socialist
Joined: 20 Sep 2004 Posts: 13502 Location: Here.
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Wed Jan 25, 2006 4:10 pm |
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A few days ago there was reported that the lady did NOT have the bird flu. Thank god. But still, I think it'll get here anyway.
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Cathexis The Angel of Avalon
Joined: 26 Dec 2001 Posts: 5901 Location: ~~ Where Dreams Have No End�
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Wed Jan 25, 2006 7:30 pm |
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I'm quite relieved that the woman did not end up testing positive for the virus. I'm sure she's extremely happy to hear it, too!
Well, all we can do now is hope that our researchers, medical professionals, and such can devise an effective vaccine against this deadly virus!
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webtaz99 Commodore
Joined: 13 Nov 2003 Posts: 1229 Location: The Other Side
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Thu Jan 26, 2006 10:12 am |
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madlilnerd wrote: | Border control and customs needs to be stricter. Poultry and poultry products should now be a no-no in the exportation catorgory. No birds go in or out of any country.
Australia was working against the bird flu virus by using sniffer dogs at the airports to detect poultry products. A lot of chinese people were trying to bring moon cakes into the country, but they all got seized because the contain a egg yolk whole. |
Wild birds carry this flu also. The don't respect borders. It is a foregone conclusion that the flu will spread and mutate. It is up to us to be proactive. We need to be able to repsond to an outbreak with vaccines, which means a way to quickly produce huge amounts of vaccine in a short time. This technology would benefit the fight against many infections.
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"History is made at night! Character is who you are in the dark." (Lord John Whorfin)
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madlilnerd Duchess of Dancemat
Joined: 03 Aug 2004 Posts: 5885 Location: Slough, England
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Fri Jan 27, 2006 1:19 pm |
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Yes, but closing borders would help stop the spread from human to human if the virus mutates. People don't get that much close contact with wild birds because they're not very tame. Germs love the modern day world. In 24 hours they can be anywhere in the world, reguardless of where they started. Pandemics are a whole lot harder to control nowadays.
They don't have enough stocks of Tamiflu to make any real difference if we have a full blown human pandemic anyway. It takes too long to manufacture.
I do hope they cull all the scanky london pigeons...
Oh, BTW, would having the regular flu jab help you if you came in contact with avian flu? Just curious... because cow pox can stop you getting small pox, so maybe the same prinicple could come into play? Must ask my mother... she is the microbiologist after all.
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Cathexis The Angel of Avalon
Joined: 26 Dec 2001 Posts: 5901 Location: ~~ Where Dreams Have No End�
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Fri Jan 27, 2006 9:01 pm |
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madlilnerd wrote: | Yes, but closing borders would help stop the spread from human to human if the virus mutates. People don't get that much close contact with wild birds because they're not very tame. Germs love the modern day world. In 24 hours they can be anywhere in the world, reguardless of where they started. Pandemics are a whole lot harder to control nowadays.
They don't have enough stocks of Tamiflu to make any real difference if we have a full blown human pandemic anyway. It takes too long to manufacture.
I do hope they cull all the scanky london pigeons...
Oh, BTW, would having the regular flu jab help you if you came in contact with avian flu? Just curious... because cow pox can stop you getting small pox, so maybe the same prinicple could come into play? Must ask my mother... she is the microbiologist after all. |
That's an interesting question....I don't think it would affect the avian flu seeing as how they're two different types of viruses....but you've got a point about cow pox....
Wikipedia, here I come!!
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Seven of Nine Sammie's Mammy
Joined: 16 Jun 2001 Posts: 7871 Location: North East England
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Sat Jan 28, 2006 7:07 am |
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Unfortunately, the way the current flu jab works, it won't. However, they're currently creating a flu vaccine that should work against all types of flu (the part of the virus that it works against isn't one that changes with each mutation). It's still a work in progress, but hopefully in a few years time it'll be available for use.
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madlilnerd Duchess of Dancemat
Joined: 03 Aug 2004 Posts: 5885 Location: Slough, England
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Sat Jan 28, 2006 12:25 pm |
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There's a really good article in this week's new scientist (because it's this week's, they've only got a preview on the web) about how although the wild birds can spread the virus, it is the poultry we need to keep check on as this is what most humans will come in contact with. Culling wild birds may not make any difference, except depleating our already endangered species.
I agree with this, but I also think that we should cull town pigeons, as people do come into contact with these and they are filthy and disease ridden anyway.
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