Bird Flu Transmission: Understanding How Avian Influenza Spreads

Bird flu, or avian influenza, is a contagious disease that affects birds and sometimes swine. The disease normally stays within these species, but sometimes it crosses over and infects humans.

History

• The bird flu pandemic that was still lingering in 2010 began in 2003 as a contagious disease spread from wild to domestic birds. Researchers originally theorized that migratory birds carried a mild form of the virus to poultry farms, where it mutated into a more aggressive and deadly form of the disease. But they later suspected that migratory birds carried and transmitted the virus in its most lethal form.

Effects

• The avian flu virus altered its genetic structure by combining with human and animal versions of the flu virus so that it could pass from birds to humans. As of 2010, bird flu infects people who have been in contact with infected birds or who have been in a virus-contaminated environment. The disease is also passed through intermediate hosts such as pigs, according to the Centers for Disease Control and Prevention.

Theories/Speculation

• Bird flu is an aggressive disease that causes viral pneumonia and organ failure. It often infects healthy young adults and children. Global health organizations are concerned about the possibility that the bird flu could mutate into a more infectious form that is spread from person to person, which would result in a worldwide pandemic.