Scientific Puzzle: Some Turks Have Bird Flu but Aren't Sick
By ELISABETH ROSENTHAL
International Herald Tribune
ANKARA, Turkey, Jan. 10 - Two young brothers, ages 4 and 5, who have tested positive for the dreaded A(H5N1) avian virus but shown no symptoms of the disease were being closely watched at Kecioren Hospital here on Tuesday. Doctors are unsure whether they are for the first time seeing human bird flu in its earliest stages or if they are discovering that infection with the A(H5N1) virus does not always lead to illness.
In any case, the highly unusual cluster of five cases detected here in Turkey's capital over the last three days - all traceable to contact with sick birds - is challenging some of the doctors' assumptions about bird flu and giving them new insights into how it spreads and causes disease. Since none of the five have died, it is raising the possibility that human bird flu is not as deadly as currently thought, and that many mild cases in Asian countries may have gone unreported.
"The two brothers are a very interesting finding that may for the first time give us a chance to monitor the human response to the disease," said Dr. Guénaël Rodier, who is leading a World Health Organization Team now in Turkey.
LINK
International Herald Tribune
ANKARA, Turkey, Jan. 10 - Two young brothers, ages 4 and 5, who have tested positive for the dreaded A(H5N1) avian virus but shown no symptoms of the disease were being closely watched at Kecioren Hospital here on Tuesday. Doctors are unsure whether they are for the first time seeing human bird flu in its earliest stages or if they are discovering that infection with the A(H5N1) virus does not always lead to illness.
In any case, the highly unusual cluster of five cases detected here in Turkey's capital over the last three days - all traceable to contact with sick birds - is challenging some of the doctors' assumptions about bird flu and giving them new insights into how it spreads and causes disease. Since none of the five have died, it is raising the possibility that human bird flu is not as deadly as currently thought, and that many mild cases in Asian countries may have gone unreported.
"The two brothers are a very interesting finding that may for the first time give us a chance to monitor the human response to the disease," said Dr. Guénaël Rodier, who is leading a World Health Organization Team now in Turkey.
LINK
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