BIRD FLU - Bird flu (avian influenza) with the aviary influenza threatens Africa with the discovery of H5N1 in Nigeria. The spread of bird flu from Asia to eastern Europe and now west Africa (Nigeria) has increased the chance the virus will mutate and set off a pandemic. The H5N1 strain of bird flu was reported Wednesday on a commercial farm in the northern Nigerian state of Kaduna (village of Jaji), the first time the virus has been documented in Africa. On Thursday, Nigerian authorities reported the same virus in two other states. The virus has killed at least 88 people since the first apparition in 2003. The World Health Organization (WHO) has confirmed 88 human deaths, mostly in Asia, though the disease recently has been detected in Europe and the Middle East. For the moment, all the deaths have been linked to contact with infected poultry. Experts fear the virus could mutate into a form that spreads easily among humans, setting off a pandemic.

Nigeria's neighbouring countries should step up surveillance and border controls. The highly pathogenic avian influenza virus often spreads through the movement of affected birds, FAO and the World Organisation for Animal Health (OIE) said today. Therefore the movement of poultry should be stopped immediately in order to contain the disease. People should not import or trade livestock or livestock products, including poultry.

Bird flu with the aviary influenza threatens Nigeria and Africa

FAO and OIE today called upon veterinary authorities in Nigeria to immediately close down poultry markets throughout Kaduna and Kano states and neighbouring regions to prevent the further spread of the deadly bird flu virus. Countries surrounding Nigeria (Benin, Cameroon, Chad, Ghana, Niger and Togo) should increase surveillance measures, the two organizations said in a joint statement. Veterinary staff should be mobilized to tighten border inspections and control.

Priority measures include: appropriate culling respecting OIE standards in and around outbreak spots, ring vaccination around infected areas, the control of people and livestock moving to and from outbreak zones, thorough disinfection, hygiene and good farming practices. Only vaccines that fulfil OIE international quality standards should be used. FAO and OIE welcomed the emergency measures applied in Kaduna, Kano and Plateau states, where suspected bird flu cases in poultry are under investigation. However, control measures need to be intensified applying standard procedures recommended by FAO and the OIE international guidelines.

FAO and OIE welcomed a statement by the Nigerian Minister of Agriculture, Mallam A. Bello, that farmers would be compensated for livestock losses caused by the disease and culling. Compensation schemes are useful to encourage early disease reporting. Veterinary staff and technicians working in outbreak areas and laboratories should wear protective clothing. FAO and the US Department of Agriculture are shipping over 1 000 sets of protective gear to Nigeria. FAO and OIE will field a joint mission to Nigeria within 48 hours to reinforce the FAO veterinary team already on the ground. The mission will assess the situation and will advise on emergency measures and needs.

Avian influenza, or “ bird flu ”, is a contagious disease of animals caused by viruses that normally infect only birds and, less commonly, pigs. Avian influenza viruses are highly species-specific, but have, on rare occasions, crossed the species barrier to infect humans. In domestic poultry, infection with avian influenza viruses causes two main forms of disease, distinguished by low and high extremes of virulence. The so-called “low pathogenic” form commonly causes only mild symptoms (ruffled feathers, a drop in egg production) and may easily go undetected. The highly pathogenic form is far more dramatic. It spreads very rapidly through poultry flocks, causes disease affecting multiple internal organs, and has a mortality that can approach 100%, often within 48 hours. The role of migratory birds in the spread of highly pathogenic avian influenza is not fully understood. Wild waterfowl are considered the natural reservoir of all influenza A viruses. They have probably carried influenza viruses, with no apparent harm, for centuries. Recent events make it likely that some migratory birds are now directly spreading the H5N1 virus in its highly pathogenic form. Further spread to new areas is expected.

The causative agent, the H5N1 virus, has proved to be especially tenacious. Despite the death or destruction of an estimated 150 million birds, the virus is now considered endemic in many parts of Indonesia and Viet Nam and in some parts of Cambodia, China, Thailand, and possibly also the Lao People's Democratic Republic. Control of the disease in poultry is expected to take several years. Japan, the Republic of Korea, and Malaysia have announced control of their poultry outbreaks and are now considered free of the disease. In the other affected areas, outbreaks are continuing with varying degrees of severity.

The H5N1 virus is also of particular concern for human health, as explained below.

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