Reply #84: Update: Bird flu death rates probably exaggerated, says expert [View All]

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http://www.newstarget.com/005889.html

Bird flu death rates probably exaggerated, says expert; early reports say the virus kills 90 percent of those infected

Early reports say a bird flu virus that has broken out across Asia kills up to 90 percent of those infected. But at least one expert says that figure is probably way off. He says the death rate figures do not take into account a growing number of minor cases that never get reported. He also notes that a flu pandemic that killed 20 million people in 1918 had a death rate of just 2 percent.

While early reports of the deadliness of human avian influenza suggested that about 90 percent of the victims died, there are growing signs that the disease's true death rate is much lower - although still high enough to kill many millions of people if the worst fears about its spread come to fruition.

The death rate for garden-variety flu for children, the elderly or those with weakened immune systems is less than 1 percent in developed countries.

The death rate for bird flu is dwindling because it is easier to count people who die than those who become infected and have minor symptoms, or none at all.

This phenomenon of sub clinical disease - essentially a mild case of the bird flu - seems to be occurring with more frequency than previously appreciated.

For instance, the virus was detected in a healthy 81-year-old man in Vietnam and in a few others who barely knew they had been ill.

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