07 June 2006
World Progressing Against Pandemic Risk, State's Dobriansky Says
United States, partners meet in Vienna, Austria, to combat avian, pandemic flu
By Charlene Porter
Washington File Staff Writer
Washington -- The international community has made “great progress” in its joint effort to combat the avian influenza pandemic and prepare for a possible outbreak of human pandemic influenza, said Under Secretary of State for Democracy and Global Affairs Paula Dobriansky June 7.
Dobriansky met in Vienna, Austria, June 6-7 with senior officials from other nations involved in an International Partnership on Avian and Pandemic Influenza.
President Bush launched the multilateral initiative in September 2005, and representatives from participating nations met in Washington for the first time in October. (See related article.)
“The world has made great progress, improving preparedness and communications, surveillance and detection, and response and containment,” Dobriansky said in an address to the session, hosted by the Austrian Foreign Ministry on behalf of the European Union.
Dobriansky also announced that the United States will contribute another $28 million to this international effort in which donor nations are trying to assist nations most severely affected by avian influenza. These lesser-developed nations are considered the likeliest places for the H5N1 virus to make the species leap that could allow it to escalate into a human pandemic.
This latest pledge pushes the total U.S. contribution to the effort to more than $360 million.
The World Health Organization (WHO) has confirmed 128 human deaths from infection with the H5N1 virus from 225 identified cases.
The virus is not considered to have the ability to readily infect humans or to be easily transmitted among them. The possibility that the virus might develop those capabilities gives rise to warnings from health experts that a pandemic could emerge.
The Food and Agriculture Organization of the United Nations estimates that more than 200 million birds have died from H5N1 infection or been destroyed in the animal pandemic that began in late 2003.
SUPPORT IN MANY FORMS
In the months since the partnership first coalesced, Dobriansky said the United States has taken a variety of steps to help other nations contain or combat disease.
• The United States has supported planning and communication efforts in 46 nations.
• The United States is helping more than 25 countries improve their laboratories, diagnostic capacities and disease-surveillance systems. (See related article.)
• The United States has provided supplies and equipment to 34 nations to bolster their ability to respond rapidly when the disease first appears within their borders.
• The United States has sent stockpiles of anti-viral medications to Asia in preparation for a human outbreak, and is spending more than $60 million to enlarge international stockpiles of pharmaceuticals for that purpose. (See related article.)
• The United States has provided $36 million to support the work of international organizations such as WHO and the U.N. Food and Agriculture Organization, and $41 million for international research activities.
Dobriansky said this support is producing positive results that provide examples for other nations. In Vietnam, she said, quick government action to reduce opportunities for animal and human outbreaks helped contain the virus. In the midst of animal and human outbreaks in Turkey in January, region-wide cooperation helped minimize the impact of the disease.
THE FUTURE
At the same time she cited success, Dobriansky was cautious about projecting success into the future.
Reports of the appearance of animal disease were made swiftly, as H5N1 broke out in 51 nations, although the State Department official said the same may not necessarily be true if human disease appears.
“Leaders must continue to encourage their colleagues at home and abroad to be forthcoming with information critical to global response efforts,” she said. “Providing accurate information to international partners can significantly limit both the human and economic impacts of an outbreak.”
FROM THE FIELD
The urgency of the talks in Vienna is underscored by reports of another human death in Indonesia, confirmed by WHO June 6. A 15-year-old boy in the West Java Province died from the disease within six days of the first signs of symptoms in late May.
The boy’s exposure is linked to the presence of sick and dying chickens in his household. The case demonstrates the importance of efforts to raise public awareness about the risk and dangers of disease, according to WHO’s report on the case.
In a second assessment of Indonesia’s action June 6, WHO describes the swift efforts of health authorities to eliminate the possibility of H5N1 infection in four nurses who had developed influenza-like illness after caring for patients who carried the deadly virus. Two of the four nurses had been involved in the care of family members fatally infected with H5N1 in the largest family cluster of the disease seen to date.
“The speed and thoroughness with which influenza-like illness in these nurses was investigated are indicative of the heightened concern among Indonesian health authorities,” the WHO situation update said.
“The negative test results for all four nurses,” the update added, “provide reassuring evidence that the virus is not spreading efficiently or sustainably among humans at present.”
Indonesia has identified 32 human cases of H5N1 infection since January, resulting in 26 deaths. After Vietnam, Indonesia has experienced the highest number of human H5N1 cases of any nation.
For ongoing coverage of the disease and efforts to combat it, see Bird Flu.
(The Washington File is a product of the Bureau of International Information Programs, U.S. Department of State. Web site: http://usinfo.state.gov)
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