Technocrat

WHO Admits Human to Human H5N1 Transmission

zogger
Thu Dec 27 18:12:49 -0800 2007
Health+and+Medicine.
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WHO has finally acknowledged the near obvious, that human to human transmission of the H5N1 virus has happened, and apparently readily, in Pakistan. This has been an ongoing event full of media contradictions and a lack of clear facts for several weeks now. There are absolutely no indications of any sort of imminent pandemic from this event at this time, but it *did* happen and to a person who had no direct contact with poultry, although there was a family contact.

If you would like to go back into short range time for a bit and get a lot more detail, Dr. Niman's site Recombinomics has a lot more to offer, scroll down for links of interest. There have been several other cases in the past few years of apparent H2H transmission, but usually poultry contact has been involved as well, making it less clear over all exactly how it occurred. In the Pakistan case, some brothers in a family were participants in a needed poultry cull, but one was *not*, and he is the one who got very sick and expired.

I know with all the other news lately this has sort of fallen off the discussions radar, but I have been following it from a bit more than just casual interest... and as long as Pakistan is in the news I thought I would put it up

WHO Admits Human to Human H5N1 Transmission
Spider
Thu Dec 27 18:34:52 -0800 2007
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It is good to know that an International Organization like the WHO is involved, particularly with this case.
Perhaps now is a good time to stock up on essential supplies.  It is possible that this may lead to a pandemic. Let's hope not.  Keep out of the poultry business.
WHO Admits Human to Human H5N1 Transmission
David Leppik
Fri Dec 28 11:11:11 -0800 2007
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Agreed. It's also possible that H5N1 won't ever be easily contagious between humans. You never can tell. All we know is that sooner or later there will be a highly contagious, deadly disease and we need to be prepared.
WHO Admits Human to Human H5N1 Transmission
phil
Fri Dec 28 13:25:44 -0800 2007
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WHO and CDC repeat the mantra "it's only a matter of timmmmme" as the mortality and morbidity decrease and there have been only ~200 recorded deaths in these many years. WHO's global stats this year must be quite a disappointment. Neither organization offers the slightest thought as to why their hoped for pandemic has not taken place. Rather as we so often read in CDC's Emerging Disease publications - the pandemic is a sure thing and we're better off focusing on draconian measures to be taken as soon as the pandemic gears up. Perhaps this one will join swine flu, SARS, BSE et al. in the "never mind" record that CDC and WHO will carefully ignore - too embarrassing to determine why they were wrong. But who knows - chicken little or cassandra?
 

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