.: Is There Going To Be An Asian Flu Pandemic?
Category:Home / Health / Diseases and Conditions
The last Asian flu pandemic occurred in 1957. It is estimated that between 1 million people and 4 million people were killed by the virus.
Fast forward to October 2004 when an American lab sent out stored samples of the deadly strain of Asian flu to different labs all over the world. By some kind of administrative error some 3,700 samples of the 1957 Asian flu virus were sent out to labs around the world. The US scrambled to fix this terrible error but because the labs had expected to receive a much more normal sample of flu virus for testing they did not treat the sample with the care that the strain they received deserved. It is unlikely that all the samples were retrieved.
How could this have happened?
The College of American Pathologists, from time to time, sends out different viruses to labs worldwide. They do this so that these labs can test to see how well their vaccines are coping with the expected influenza strains. In order to make the testing accurate, the labs are not told what strain of virus they are going to receive. Only the CAP knows what they are sending out to the testing labs. The College of American Pathologists thought that they were sending out a regular old Influenza A virus but instead they sent out one of the most deadly viruses in human history: the Asian flu.
If this Asian flu had escaped into the population the consequences would have been very serious. Nobody born since 1968 would have any mmunity to the virus, the effects would likely be at least as bad as they were in 1957 when people had had the chance to buld up some immunity from the virus' ancestors.
The incident was caused by an administrative error although the details have yet to be made public. How could 3,700 samples of Asian flu be put out into the world by accident? Samples were sent to Asia, the Middle East, North and South America as well as Europe. It only took one lab worker to have an accident, or for a lab to dispose of the samples incorrectly and the genie would have been out of the bottle.
The most chilling aspect of the issue was that because of the lack of knowledge at the receiving labs, they did not take the care that they should have. Asian flu should be kept in extreme containment. Because the kits normally contain a relatively harmless strain of flu, they do not receive great security.
This incident tends to put the curent avian (bird) flu scare into perspective. H5N1 (avian) flu does not spread from human to human, only from birds to humans or other animals. As such, whilst it is sensible to be concerned about the bird flu issue, the real threat comes from the kind of man-made mistake of October 2004 when a deadly infectious disease was carelessly handled. This kind of error can happen at any time and would have devatating consequences. Bird flu is unlikely to ever make the jump across species and even now, vaccines are almost ready to protect humans against the H5N1 flu virus.
Article keywords: flu, influenza, asian flu, bird flu, avian flu, H5N1 flu virus
Article Source: http://www.articles32.com
About the author: Michael Johnson has been writing for quite some time. He now runs an article directory at www.knowhow-now.com carries over 26,000 articles, reviews and how to's for article marketers and content users and the list is growing every day. For more articles about influenza visit knowhow-now.com
Submitted with Article Distributor.
.: New Diseases and Conditions Articles
1). Migraine Symptoms, Cause And Cures
Almost everyone has had a headache at one point in his or her life. Headaches are of different types, one of them is migraine.
2). Which Prostate Treatments Are Most Effective?
Prostate treatments, traditional or alternative, may complement each other in fighting prostate disorders. It is up to the patient to identify the combination that works best.
3). Obese People, How To Tackle This Number One Problem?
Obese people have become part of an epidemic in the United States. Are you one of the 300,000 Americans who die each year of diseases related to obesity? Did you know that approximately $177 billion is spent on illnesses related to this epidemic?
4). Anxiety And Depression Sufferer Ends It All - Are You Taking Your Anxiety Seriously?
Anxiety and depression are familiar conditions to us, but are also among the most serious illnesses in the world. Thankfully both these conditions can be treated and sufferers can live anxiety free for life.
5). Amazing Anxiety Disorder Phobia Relief Reveals The Truth - Live Free From Anxiety
Anxiety disorder is capable of destroying your life if not treated immediately. Luckily it is possible to live free from anxiety for the remainder of your life.
6). Warning: Watch Out For These Anxiety Panic Attack Symptoms
Anxiety panic attack symptoms can help you determine if you have anxiety to be able to make preventive measures. Every time we feel worried about certain things or fear about the possibilities of what might happen if, a lot of ifs- these are what we call anxiety.
7). What Commonly Prescribed Anti-Anxiety Medications Is Right For You?
Anxiety medications are prescribed to anxiety sufferers to relieve anxiety and depression. There are several commonly prescribed anti-anxiety medications that help sufferers control their anxiety.
.: Top Diseases and Conditions Articles
1). Acid Reflux: What You Really Need To Know.
The formation of gases and acidic substances in the stomach and its backing up into the esophagus causes severe pain or burning sensation in the stomach and chest area that is clinically known as Acid Reflux or Gastroespohageal Reflux Disease.
2). Sciatica: How Can You Get Rid of Your Pain in the Butt?
Living with pain in the buttock and leg is not an option. These 10 tips to getting rid of leg pain forever are invaluable to anyone who is or knows someone suffering from the debilitating condition known as sciatica.
3). Gall Bladder - A Place For Gallstones
It is a pouch-shaped organ which is an important part of our body and lies next to the liver. It accepts the bile from the liver which is being stored to help digestion.
4). HPV Virus
Human Papilloma Ciruses (HPV) is a virus that infects humans. Some of the effects of the virus are associated with sexually transmitted diseases (STD's).
Over one hundred strains of the virus have been identified by Scientists. Most of these strains are harmless. Some of these strains can produce common skin warts which appear on the hands and feet.
5). Bad Circulation Is A Growing Health Problem
Although the internet is the number 1 place for information today most people still get their information from viewing television. Unlike the internet, by watching TV you do not really have choice on what type of info you get. What the TV stations feed you is what you get.
6). Teach Your Kids How To Avoid Catching Cold Sores
Teaching your kids about cold sores will help them practice prevention.
7). tiniitus online support
Tinnitus: A persistant high pitched screaming only you can hear. You can hear it 24 hours a day, 365 days a year. Sometimes the noise is enough to make you feel you are loosing your sanity. In fact, on a lighter note one could call it "a big fat pain in the ear !"
It may be of little comfort to Tinnitus victims, but experts estimate that approximately 17 % of the world´s population are currantly suffering from Tinnitus.