Image: AMISOM Public Information, via Flickr
Move comes as global concern grows in the wake of infections in US dairy workers
South Africa is stepping up efforts to detect avian influenza in humans following growing global concern about spillover infections from animals.
The stepped-up surveillance system due to be operational later this year will document human cases associated with outbreaks in poultry, wild birds or other animals, the country’s National Institute for Communicable Diseases has confirmed.
“This surveillance system will be set up in collaboration with veterinary and animal health colleagues,” Sibongile Walaza, head of epidemiology in the institute’s Centre for Respiratory Diseases and Meningitis, told Research Professional News.
Pandemic potential
Concerns are growing globally around avian influenza, with three dairy workers in the US having caught the virus from dairy cattle since April this year.
Bird flu comes in various subtypes, including H5N1, responsible for the infections from cows to humans. Humans infected with H5N1 have died in around half the cases that have been reported globally.
Infection between people is so far very rare, but this could change if the virus mutates as it spreads, which makes tracking the disease a priority for health bodies including the World Health Organization.
No time for complacency
Last year, an outbreak of H5N1 in South African poultry farms decimated the country’s poultry stocks and disrupted egg production in the country. No human infections were reported.
But that should not breed complacency, Walaza said. “Although no human cases were detected during the recent outbreaks in chickens, testing and surveillance are important for any future potential exposures.”
Walaza said her laboratory is able to detect and sequence flu viruses, including those of avian origin, and store them in case they are needed for vaccine production.
“Should a pandemic virus emerge with the potential to spread from person to person, South Africa has a pandemic preparedness plan in place,” she said.