The US Health and Human Resources Representative for South Asia Region, Dr Altaf Ahmed Lal, has categorically stated to have found no evidence of Avian influenza -H5N1 type among poultry birds in Pakistan.
Talking to a group of journalists here on Sunday, he said the virus isolated, particularly in Karachi, has been H7 and H9 and not the lethal H5N1 diagnosed among birds and even in pigs in South East Asia, ultimately contributing to human deaths.
Dr Lal reiterated that even H7 an H9 diagnosed among Karachi-based poultry has been contained. " Problem is over," he claimed on the basis of information provided to him by local authorities.
This was said to be in the backdrop of the fact that otherwise too the meat as well as eggs of these birds were safe provided they were properly cooked at high temperatures.
Moreover, he reminded that even earlier the identified sub-types of influenza virus, diagnosed in Karachi, was only among layer chicken and not in broiler - "this was an interesting feature of the outbreak," he observed.
Dr Lal, who is presently serving as US Health Attaché to India, said the US-based research institutions got involved in the Avian influenza virus since the case was reported in Thailand and is attempting to complement the efforts being made to arrest the same.
His present visit to Pakistan, he said was to assess support the US government could extend in terms of diagnostic facilities, adding in the same breath that Pakistan was fairly well-equipped with reagents but it always help to have some other reagents, especially for H5 type and N sub-types.
"Diagnostic technique of any new virus can get complicated so I have come to offer any required support," the US-HHH Representative for South Asia said, adding that though it would be pre-mature to comment about transmissibility of viruses, however, it would be worthwhile to trace contributors that triggered avian influenza (Type H7 and H9) among Pakistani poultry.
Data currently available in Pakistan, he said suggests that no population other then layer chicken was affected and not even broiler was inflicted. Whether they were protected owing to any biological factor or hormonal cause needs to be assessed, he observed, adding that "research is being undertaken and scientists would come forward with the actual factor."
COMPLICATIONS: Answer-ing a question regarding isolation of varied types of the influenza virus typical to birds and animals in Pakistan, he said 'there are always logistic complications and this was also an involving procedure.'
According to him, in US determining N sub-types would not have taken more than two weeks, however, he reminded that change in environment and climate could be a problem as all pathogens evolve and all pathogens change in time and space. "All depends how much has happened in the given time," he elaborated.
Mentioning that Influenza-A has been isolated even almost hundred years back, however, what was new was its recent capability to affect human being and owing to very fact the surveillance system has to be heightened.