The World Organisation for Animal Health (OIE) announced today that tests conducted by the organization have confirmed the presence of highly pathogenic H5N1 avian influenza in samples taken from domestic birds in Turkey.
In Romania, investigations into recent poultry deaths have identified the H5 subtype of avian influenza virus. Additional testing is expected to determine the strain and whether the virus is highly pathogenic. Authorities in both countries have undertaken control measures.
The WHO said the spread of H5N1 to poultry in new geographic areas is cause for concern, as it increases the likelihood of additional human cases. But to date, evidence indicates that the H5N1 virus does not spread easily from birds to humans.
WHO has not changed the level of pandemic alert from Phase
3, which means a virus new to humans is causing infections, but is not easily spread from person to person.
WHO recommends that travelers to areas experiencing outbreaks of H5N1 in poultry should avoid contact with live animal markets and poultry farms, and with dead migratory birds or wild birds showing signs of disease.
Direct contact with infected poultry or surfaces and objects contaminated by their droppings is considered the main route of human infection. Exposure risk is highest during slaughter, defeathering, butchering and preparation of poultry for cooking. There is no evidence that properly cooked poultry or poultry products can be a source of infection.
Countries located along avian migratory routes should be vigilant for signs of disease in wild and domestic birds, according to WHO. Migratory birds have been directly implicated in the spread of the H5N1 virus in its highly pathogenic form.
