Bird flu viruses detected

In Mecklenburg-Vorpommern, the bird flu virus H5N1 was detected in a poultry farm. As a precaution, according to the Ministry of Agriculture, all 17,000 ducks and geese are killed.

(13.11.2010) In a poultry farm in Mecklenburg-Western Pomerania, the bird flu virus H5 was detected. As a result, all 17,000 ducks and geese were killed to prevent any possible spread to other animals. A hastily convened working group of the Ministry of Agriculture in Schwerin is currently discussing the next steps. The flu viruses are suspected of mutating.

Bird flu virus detected in Mecklenburg-Vorpommern
In the district of Parchim, the bird flu virus H5 was found in some animals in a fattening and poultry farm. For this reason, the Ministry of Agriculture ordered in the company concerned the mass killing of 17,000 ducks and geese in order to prevent further spread to other livestock, as the Ministry announced on Friday.

Influenza could become highly contagious
The flu has the dangerous property of developing from a non-or slightly disabling, to a highly contagious disease. „That's exactly where the danger lies“, said the veterinarian Maria Dayen. Now a special company is supposed to kill all the animals of the company in compliance with the disease protection guidelines. Subsequently, the carcasses are burned or otherwise rendered harmless. However, the company is reimbursed from the so-called animal disease fund the financial value of the animals killed.

Restricted area set up for poultry operations
As informed the district administration Parchim, around the mast enterprise a restriction area of ​​one kilometer was furnished. The manufacturer also volunteered to participate in the National Avian Influenza (Avian Influenza) Monitoring Program. This program has been specifically designed to detect an occurrence of viral infections in a timely manner. It was in this routine study that influenza A antibodies of subtype H 5 were detected in some animal blood samples. These findings suggest a corresponding infection. Although this form of the pathogen is initially harmless, by mutations, the pathogen can develop further, and develop a high explosiveness to the health of animals and humans. The findings have already been confirmed by the State Office for Agriculture, Food Safety and Fisheries and by the Friedrich Loeffler Institute on the island of Riems as a national reference laboratory. So far, the presence of a highly pathogenic virus has been ruled out. However, it is not the H5N1 virus, but the harmless H5N2 pathogen, which in itself is completely harmless to humans and even asymptomatic to animals.

Health risk for humans currently harmless
Recently, the public had been alarmed by the spread of bird flu in 2006. Numerous wild birds and farm animals in Germany were infected with the bird virus H5N1. After the initial panic, however, it could be stated that the avian influenza virus has only been sporadically transferred to mammals and humans in recent years. However, if a transmission, the infection often ended fatally.

The risk to humans of contracting H5N1 is considered extreme by health experts and scientists worldwidelow estimated. Affected by the infections were mainly people who lived in close contact with the sick birds. This relationship was found primarily in Asian countries. (Sb)

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Picture: Blumenia