The bird flu viruses go on mutating through antigenic shift or drift. The mutation cannot be traced to find out what form it is taking. So, the scientists cannot prepare the vaccine before a pandemic occurs.
The outbreak of the pandemic flu in the South East Asian countries created a wave of terror through out the world. There were evidences of the bird flu being spread to West and infecting some of the African countries. The possibility of a strike in the western world cannot be neglected since the pathogens or viruses of the bird flu are carried by the migratory birds.
The death of people in certain countries has raised an alarm about the incompetence of science and technology to create a vaccination for bird flu.
The preparation of the bird flu vaccine is not an easy task. The most important fact is that a vaccine for a virus cannot be prepared beforehand since the strain of the virus is not known till it attacks.
The bird flu viruses go on mutating through antigenic shift or drift. The mutation cannot be traced to find out what form it is taking. So, the scientists cannot prepare the vaccine before a pandemic occurs.
Thus, there lies the problem in formulating a vaccination for bird flu. The world is totally unaware of the kind of virus that is going to infest the humankind. Next problem in the line is, the preparation of the vaccination will take a long time after the outbreak. That is, it will take almost six months to prepare a vaccine and a year for its mass distribution.
At present, prototypes of the H5N1 virus vaccination have been prepared by the scientist which are able to provide some kind of protection to the body. The prototype vaccine is not a complete protection against the bird flu. All the health organizations of different countries are still working on it and China has claimed that they have prepared two types of vaccines for the H5N1 bird flu virus.
The vaccination can produce high accentuated antibodies in the immune system that can target the H5N1 virus and remain longer in the immune system. The WHO has acclaimed this effort and will provide China with a prototype vaccine for humans, for developing a more effective vaccine.
It’s a good news that vaccines are soon going to be available for the deadly H5N1 virus which is the present threat to the world. The CDC and WHO are providing instruction to the Health Departments of the countries throughout the world to teach people how to prevent the infection of the bird flu.
There are some antiviral medicines like Tami flu, Relenza, and alike that can be taken to reduce the intensity of the attack and help the immune system of your body to fight.
Let’s hope for better that the vaccines are made available, as soon as possible. Maintain personal hygiene for preventing the virus, because it cannot attack you if you are clean and healthy to beat it.
