Tuesday, April 11, 2006
Calif. Could Be Ground Zero For Bird Flu Outbreak?
RICHMOND, Calif. There is growing concern about when the bird flu may land on California shores, but a Bay Area lab on the front lines of the battle is gearing up to fight the potentially deadly pandemic.
Dr. Carol Glaser and Dr. Janice Louie are with the California Department of Health Services. The pair work at the state lab in Richmond and specialize in viruses. One of their top goals is to immediately identify anyone in California infected with H5N1, a strain of the virus that causes bird flu.
H5N1 has caused lethal outbreaks in poultry and waterfowl in Southeast Asia, China, Africa and Europe. Since 2003, the bird flu has infected nearly 200 people. More than half had died.
“This may be our biggest public health issue that any of us will ever address in our lifetime,” said Glaser. “Every week we have another country that is experiencing chicken flu. I think the odds are that eventually this virus will mutate enough that it will be transmitted easily from person to person.”
Glaser and Louie are now waiting for its next move.
“We’ve tested in the past year approximately three dozen people,” Louie said.
Fortunately, none of the three dozen people tested positive for bird flu.
But the tests proved a good exercise for the lab.
“I think lab testing is one of the key components to surveillance and surveillance is one of the key components to ultimately containing any pandemic,” Louie said.
With millions of travelers flying into local airports each year, the Bay Area could be Ground Zero.
“The Bay Area, just given the frequency of our travelers to different areas of the world, would be potential hotspot,” Glaser said.