The wound left by Covid-19 is still fresh.
That's why Europe has decided to play ahead, securing supplies of bird flu vaccines in case of a future pandemic . But while the European Commission announces the signing of two reservation contracts for doses , an Italian study confirms that, so far, there has been no spillover , or leap of species, or transmission between people. However, it remains essential to monitor the evolution of the virus genome.
In 2021 and 2022, the outbreak of highly pathogenic avian flu "was the most serious ever recorded in the EU in terms of number of outbreaks in poultry, geographical spread and number of dead wild birds", reports the European Food Safety Authority ( Efsa). And studies show that in recent years the variety of affected species has expanded, also affecting mammals such as seals and foxes. In Europe, according to the latest report by the European Centers for Disease Control (ECDC), seagulls are the main victim , while the risk for the population remains low .
In fact, in 2023 there would be 4 cases in humans , i.e. father and daughter in Cambodia, one in Ecuador and one in China. In the event the World Health Organization were to declare a new flu pandemic, "companies would update their vaccines", which for now are for animal use but could be adapted to human use. A pandemic emergency for now seems, however, a distant hypothesis .
(Unioneonline/vf)
