March 4, 2005

 

WHO expects bird flu to end soon in Vietnam

 

 

A World Health Organisation (WHO) official said he believed that the current outbreak of avian influenza in Vietnam is likely to end soon as the outbreak pattern has been very similar to 2004's.

 

"It certainly is still too early to predict, but so far the outbreak pattern has been very similar to last year," said Dr Hans Troedson, resident representative of the WHO office in Vietnam.

 

He was asked to comment on a foreign report saying that the situation for avian influenza and H5N1 virus in Vietnam is not a concern, and that the current outbreak in the country has almost been stamped out.

 

"There hasn't been any new cases for three weeks until these recent ones in Thai Binh province; and these might just be a few sporadic cases at the end of this current outbreak if the pattern continues to be similar to the situation one year ago when we saw the outbreak ending in March".

 

Regarding a foreign source that quoted him as saying: "New H5N1-contracted cases in the country are not signs of a worsening situation in Vietnam", he said:

 

"It is expected that more cases of H5N1 will be diagnosed, since it is likely a reflection of the continued presence of the virus in animals as well as of the sensitivity of the country's surveillance system which was improved, following identification of the first human cases of infection in early 2004."

 

"WHO's concern about the potential for the type-A virus to become a pandemic, however, remains high," he said. "We continue to work closely with the government in Vietnam to provide technical and financial assistance to control and contain the spread of the virus."

 

In an interview with Vietnam News Agency (VNA) reporters on March 3, Peter Horby, medical officer of the WHO office in Vietnam further said:

 

"WHO has worked with donor organisations to mobilise funds to support the Government's fight against avian influenza. In the last 12 months WHO in Vietnam has managed funds donated for avian influenza control by the European Commission, Italian Government, Luxembourg Government, Netherlands Government, AusAID and others. Recently the European Commission donated 600,000 Euros for the emergency response to avian influenza.

 

"WHO provides technical support through staff members in the offices in Ha Noi and Ho Chi Minh City and also through international consultants. Recently, international consultants have provided technical advice on laboratory diagnosis, hospital infection control and vaccine development."

 

Asked how WHO could help Vietnam develop vaccines against the avian influenza, he said "Last week four international experts visited the National Institute of Hygiene and Epidemiology of Vietnam to provide technical advice on further development of a safe and effective vaccine against avian influenza for use in humans. Aside from technical advice, WHO can provide prototype vaccine strains and the materials needed to standardise vaccine formulations".