When bird flu lands in the UK

The UK will have just weeks to brace itself for a flu pandemic once cases start spreading rapidly in Asia, experts warned. The Health Protection Agency (HPA) has been using statistical models to estimate how soon a pandemic could start affecting the UK. But it seems that little can be done once the infection arrives, as just one case can soon multiply and infect many other people, who go on to infect even more. Dr John Edmunds, from the HPA's centre for infections: "There is only one thing that can be done to stop it, and that is to stamp it out at source and if you're lucky you can stop a pandemic developing at the source."

More here.

And the HPA FAQ on avian flu is here.


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