Authorities are on high alert to curb the spread of the killer Avian Flu virus which recently mutated. Reem Leila tracks developments Health officials confirmed last Tuesday that Egypt's 12th fatal victim of bird flu died on Friday. The victim was a 17-year-old girl from Fayyoum governorate, southwest of the capital Cairo. She believed to have been infected after coming into contact with sick and dead birds at her home. Despite a nationwide campaign to persuade Egyptians not to keep birds in or around their homes, the practice is still extant in many areas. The Supreme National Committee Combating Bird Flu (SNCCBF) and the World Health Organisation (WHO) are working together to fight avian influenza in Egypt, which has now mutated to the more fatal 294S strain. SNCCBF, headed by Health Minister Hatem El-Gabali, drew new containment plans and strategies in view of local and international developments. Health Ministry Spokesman Abdel-Rahman Shaheen said that there is constant coordination with all world organisations and agencies involved in the fight against the epidemic. The recent alteration in the avian flu virus was expected since "it often occurs in the world of viruses," according to Shaheen, adding that authorities are being very transparent about the issue since it concerns the entire world as epidemics do not stop at borders. The new virus is resistant to the Tamiflu bird flu antidote, "resulting in a 100 per cent death rate, unlike the older version which gave victims a 50/50 chance of survival," revealed Shaheen. Research and monitoring of further mutations is ongoing in cooperation with WHO and the US Navy's Medical Research Unit (NAMRU). "Samples taken from victims were sent to numerous research agencies to identify the genetic map of the new virus strain, and to determine how effective drugs are," the health official stated. He added that Adamine, a new drug used to treat the disease along with Tamiflu, has been supplied to hospitals. SNCCBF officials cautioned that the virus has become fiercer than ever, and that any suspected cases should be reported to the toll free number 105. The first case of the milder bird flu H5N1 among chickens was reported on 17 February 2006, and one month later the first human infection became known. Since then, 20 people have been infected, eight of whom died. On 17 January 2007, the first mutation of the H5N1 virus into the lethal 294S strain was reported, and all three victims died. Hassan El-Bushra, WHO's regional advisor, noted that Egypt has had the largest outbreak of cases outside of Asia, and there are concerns that the virus could mutate into a more serious strain and spread across the region. This would endanger humans all over the world, resulting in restricted travel to and from Egypt. Nonetheless, El-Bushra continued, Egypt has learned from the previous outbreak and is well prepared to deal efficiently with the virus. He added that Egypt has more than enough supplies of Tamiflu and Adamine. The Netherlands government and the Kuwaiti Fund for Development (KFD) have given Egypt LE500 million to implement the SNCCBF plan to vaccinate all the poultry in the country, thus eliminating the bird flu virus. According to Emad Eissa, official spokesman for the Ministry of Agriculture and Land Reclamation, implementation of SNCCBF's plan will take at least five years to complete. So far, some 500 million birds have been vaccinated, but another 100 million remain -- most of which are domestic fowl raised in rural areas. More than 150 million doses of the bird flu vaccine will be made available annually in order to vaccinate rural poultry. "Poultry reared in farms are 100 per cent safe since they are under strict veterinary supervision," asserted Eissa. For the first time, the SNCCBF will also provide women in rural areas with the knowledge and tools to stop the spread of avian flu, including training in how to identify the disease and the provision of first aid kits. "We have to convince them that they, along with their children, are the ones who will lose if infected with the deadly virus," explained Eissa. "Female poultry workers will be employed to help in convincing women in rural areas." While the poultry industry was seriously affected by the first outbreak of the H5N1 virus, causing losses which exceeded LE17 billion, it is poised to face even more bad business. "Poultry prices have dropped very far, reaching LE5 per kilo in some areas," according to Eissa.
