Experts call for broad flu watch

The head of the World Organisation for Animal Health called on Friday for greater surveillance of pigs and animals other than birds in intensified efforts to limit the impact of future pandemic flu outbreaks.

Bernard Vallat, director-general, told the Financial Times it was “entirely wrong” to focus on slaughtering pigs as a result of the outbreak in Mexico but that there was a long-term need to step up surveillance of animals other than birds, a primary focus because of fears of H5N1 bird flu.

He made the comments as the World Health Organisation said the spread of the swine flu virus was broadly stable, with 11 countries reporting 331 laboratory confirmed cases of the virus, including 10 deaths. Only Mexico, with 156 cases and nine deaths, and the US, with 109 cases and one death, have seen “sustained community transmission”.

Mr Vallat’s organisation – reinforcing similar calls from Infosan, the International Food Safety Authorities Network – has been at the forefront of criticism leading to the WHO this week switching the name “swine flu” to influenza A (H1N1), stressing that while it contains porcine virus genes, there is no evidence the virus is currently circulating among pigs anywhere.

Virologists say pigs’ biology makes them perfect “mixing vessels” in which new flu strains are formed, making them important animals to study in order to monitor future viruses with potential to infect humans.

Even as a growing number of countries and individual businesses advised against international travel, the WHO warned that to do so would do little to prevent the spread of the virus while proving “highly disruptive to the global community”.

Marie-Paule Kieny, WHO’s vaccine research director, said the agency was discussing plans to produce a pandemic vaccine with all the relevant companies round the world, many of which are now well advanced in producing seasonal flu vaccine for the next northern hemisphere winter.

“What is absolutely certain is that within a few weeks there will be switches from seasonal to influenza A (H5N1),” Dr Kieny said. “We have no doubt that making a successful vaccine is possible within a relatively short period of time.