UKHSA prepares to roll out lateral flow tests in case of avian flu outbreak

As reported by The Guardian, UK health officials are being cautious about the possibilities of human avian flu cases spreading after a young girl dies from H5N1

The UK Health Security Agency has set out alerts to prepare to roll out lateral flow tests if signs of human avian flu contamination surfaces.

The measures were decided after an 11 year-old Cambodian girl died from the H5N1 – a variant of the avian flu spread through birds and poultry. Research is also being done to detect antibodies in blood tests in order to combat the virus.

The virus is currently not expected to be transferred through human interaction but scientists have however warned the need for caution.

“Viruses constantly evolve, and we remain vigilant for any evidence of changing risk to the population,” says Dr Meera Chand, incident director for avian influenza at the UKHSA .

145 avian flu cases were found in poultry while 656 cases were identified in wild birds in England in the previous week. While the risk might currently be low, attention should be drawn to Spanish flu pandemic of 1918 – a spread that cost the lives of 50 million people and is said to have been brought about by the transfer of the avian flu virus to humans.

“This is why it is important to detect human cases of avian influenza as quickly as possible and make sure that we give as little opportunity as possible to the virus to be transmitted further and mutate,” says Professor Massimo Palmarini, director of the Centre for Virus Research at Glasgow University.