Bird flu: WHO urges people to calm down

English, French reassure people

Destroy poultry

After the official strain of avian influenza has been confirmed in Turkey and Romania, the World Health Organization WHO has urged people to calm down because the current risk of human infection is very low.

Dick Thompson, a WHO spokesperson, said many people mistaken bird flu for a pandemic, in fact, these two diseases are completely different. If people only keep an eye on the risk of a pandemic in humans due to infection from birds, they must understand that this risk is very low.

In another report, the WHO said: "The spread of the H5N1 strain to another area means that people are at higher risk of infection. However, until now, evidence has been given. It is very difficult to see the spread from birds to people ".

Health experts now monitor whether the strain of avian influenza virus has evolved into a form that can easily be transmitted from person to person?

At the same time with WHO, French Prime Minister Dominique de Villepin and the British government also reassured the people and urged the two countries not to panic because the current bird flu in Eastern Europe has not affected them. . Villepin said France had a detailed response plan and a team ready to intervene in time if the pandemic happened.

Meanwhile, health officials in the UK insist on the group of people who need the flu vaccine. The government has also ordered 14 million doses of vaccine for the annual vaccination campaign. Like France, the UK said it had a very specific plan to deal in the case of bird flu that could be spread from person to person.

KINH LUAN (According to AP, AFP & BBC NEWS)