- ProMed Mail From Tzu Mei Huang
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- Taiwan intercepted a Panama-registered cargo ship from
China on October 14th and found hundreds of smuggled birds, mice and turtles.
Taiwan's Bureau of Animal and Plant Health Inspection and Quarantine (BAPHIQ),
the Center for Disease Control (CDC), and the Coast Guard Administration
(CGA) were responsible for this joint operation. The smuggled animals
were destroyed the next day. 19 specimens were collected from the 1037
birds and were sent to the Animal Health Research Institute for RT-PCR
and chick embryo inoculation to examine whether these birds carried avian
flu virus.
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- The result came out today (20th) and showed those birds
were avian flu H5N1-positive. Since the smuggled animals were completely
destroyed, we are able to timely prevent the invasion of avian flu.
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- Officials wore full protective gear in the process of
making arrests and destroying animals to protect their own health. They
also followed self-health-management regulations to monitor [their own]
health status for 10 days. All related personnel in the operation are currently
in good health, and the local health bureaus and the 3rd Branch office
of the Taiwan CDC will continue to monitor their health.
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- At the time of the operation, a total of 25 people were
on board; 24 of them left the country on the same ship on 16 Oct 2005.
One of them was detained in the Taichung Detention Center on the charge
of smuggling. He showed no bird flu symptoms, and he will be administered
preventive medication starting today.
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- Tzu Mei Huang Deputy Director, Surveillance Division
Center for Disease Control, Taiwan tmhuang@cdc.gov.tw
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- ProMed Mail AFX via Forbes.com
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- Some birds (which species?! - Mod.AS) smuggled into Taiwan
from China have tested positive for the deadly H5N1 bird flu virus, but
an outbreak is unlikely, as all the seized birds had already been destroyed,
health officials said.
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- "Samples collected before the birds were destroyed
were later tested positive for H5N1," said Ying Yeh, deputy director
of the Bureau of Animal and Plant Health Inspection and Quarantine.
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- The number of infected birds is not immediately available,
Yeh said.
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- China yesterday announced its 1st reported outbreak of
bird flu in more than 2 months, saying the disease had killed 2600 birds,
mostly chickens, on a farm in its northern Inner Mongolia region.
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- Taiwan's coast guard last week confiscated and destroyed
some 1500 birds smuggled from the southeast Chinese city of Fuzhou [capital
of Fujian province, southeast China] aboard a Panama-registered vessel
in the island's central Taichung harbour.
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- "There shouldn't be any worry about a bird flu outbreak,
as all birds including the affected ones were killed right on the spot
where they were confiscated," Yeh said.
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- It was the 2nd time Taiwan has seized birds smuggled
from mainland China since the coast guard launched a crackdown on the illegal
trade in August [2005].
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- ProMED-mail
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- (In December 2003, the Taiwan authorities destroyed 6
smuggled ducks which were found on the water near Taiwan's front-line island
of Quemoy. Reportedly, the ducks were found infected with the H5N1 virus
that hit Hong Kong in 1997.
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- From the current Taiwanese CDC report, which is gratefully
acknowledged, it might be assumed that the confiscated birds were probably
not domestic poultry. Were they pet-birds? Otherwise? Which species? Did
they show disease symptoms? Any pathological changes? Details, if available,
will be appreciated.
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- China has sent to the OIE its 3rd follow-up report on
avian influenza on 19 Oct 2005. The report describes an outbreak of highly
pathogenic avian influenza caused by an H5 virus, in chicken and ducks
in the village of Tengjiaying, Huhehot municipality, Inner Mongolia.
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- According to the report, the outbreak started on 14 Oct
2005 and the diagnosis performed by the National Avian Influenza Reference
Laboratory, Harbin Veterinary Research Institute, on 19 Oct 2005. HI was
positive, RT-PCR positive, and IVPI (Intravenous pathogenicity index, performed
in 6-weeks-old chicken) "highly pathogenic". The report says
that the source of infection is "contact with wild animals,"
indicating that "migrating birds pass and stay around the pool where
the HPAI outbreak [was detected]." In response to the outbreak, vaccination
was carried out, applying inactivated mono H5N2 vaccine. The report is
available at
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- http://oie.int/downld/AVIAN%20INFLUENZA/
China%20follow%20up%20report.pdf
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- Could it be assumed from the above newswire that a previous
consignment of birds smuggled from China, confiscated after August 2005,
was tested and not found positive? - Mod.AS
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- Patricia A. Doyle, PhD Please visit my "Emerging
Diseases" message board at:
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- http://www.clickitnews.com/ubbthreads/postlist.php?
- Cat=&Board=emergingdiseases
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- Zhan le Devlesa tai sastimasa
- Go with God and in Good Health
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