A global human catastrophe is waiting to erupt if the recent strain and outbreaks cannot be stopped.
Unprecedented levels of reported cases of the global spread of avian flu outbreaks and its number of casualties are now starting to worry global health officials, as per Reuters. In addition, the disease experts have urged extra precautionary measures as this global event could spark a potential human outbreak.
The same publication has reported that there are now multiple avian outbreaks happening in avian-laden locations across Asia, Europe, and Africa. The current strains that are involved have a low risk for human health and while this is essentially not an alarming threat. Its massive number of its types along with its presence globally is what causing a major concern among these officials. According to them, these events could lead to viruses mixing and along the way, could cause mutation and eventually make its way to humans.
Meanwhile, the Organization for Animal Health (OIE) shared that the concurrent number of avian outbreaks in birds recently can be considered as "a global public health concern." The World Health Organization's (WHO) director-general has also cautioned that the world "cannot afford to miss the early signs" of the said possibility.
In related news, the latest string of avian flu outbreaks has been reported in the U.K. U.K. officials have confirmed a staggering fifth area in their country that has been affected by the H5N8 strain since December 2016. WHO officials have also revealed that there are more than 40 countries that reported the similar incident. However, reports have also indicated that these strains are said to be varying since November of last year.
On the other hand, infectious disease expert at Vanderbilt University Medical Center Dr. William Schaffner has likewise shared that the medical community has since engineered a more advanced surveillance technology to find these new, potential outbreaks more easily and efficiently.
