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Caribbean Public Health Agency puts region on alert for H7N9 virus
Dr. St John said Barbados is part of a regional network, in addition to the PAHO Americas and WHO networks, and that health officials had been “characterizing and keeping a careful watch of all levels of illness”.
She said the Ministry of Health has not yet detected any strange patterns, “but as soon as we do we will ramp up our measures and inform as we always do”.
Samples of severe acute respiratory infections reported by the Queen Elizabeth Hospital, have been sent to the public health laboratory and the information also submitted to the Caribbean Public Health Agency “So that they have a record of what are the viruses are circulating in Barbados and by extension the Caribbean region.
There have not been any cases of avian flu in the Caribbean countries.
The US-based Centers for Disease Control and Prevention (CDC) said human infections with a new avian influenza H7N9 virus continue to be reported in China.
It said the virus has been detected in poultry in China. And while mild illness in human cases have been seen, most patients have had severe respiratory illness leading to some fatalities. -(CMC)
