September 11, 2006

US works out problem on bird flu sample sharing with China

US health officials say they have worked out a "lapse in communications" that was delaying China from shipping bird flu virus samples to the US.

This week, a Chinese Agriculture Ministry official acknowledged delays in shipping requested samples of bird flu virus to the US Center for Disease Control and Prevention (CDC). The delays were attributable to the CDC, which had not ironed out import procedures, the official said.

Sharing of virus information and samples has been a touchy subject for China, which came under criticism for being slow and reluctant to release data on a 2002-2003 outbreak of severe acute respiratory syndrome.

A CDC spokeswoman on Friday (Sep 8) said delays stemmed from a back-and-forth over whether the samples should be characterised as "diagnosed" or "undiagnosed".

Packing and handling guidelines are the same, but the CDC preferred the samples be shipped as "undiagnosed" because the forms and approval process allow a quicker delivery, said the spokeswoman, Kathryn Harben.

If the samples are deemed "diagnosed," the approval process for shipping can take weeks. Chinese officials wanted the samples to be deemed "diagnosed".

The two sides have agreed to have them shipped as "diagnosed" samples. CDC officials expect to receive the samples by the end of the month, she said. The number of samples to be shipped is still being worked out, she said.