According to a new study, the avian flu kills in much the same way the 1918 epidemic did, that is by drowning it's victims in fluid produced in their own lungs. It is suggested that immediate treatment with an antiviral drug is crucial, because the H5N1 virus reproduces very quickly if not suppressed within 48 hours, and pushes victims into a rapid decline to death.
According to Oxford University experts, the solution would be to 'hit it hard and hit it early', but added that because the body's own immune system response does part of the damage, doctors should consider prescribing anti-inflammatory drugs along with the antivirals such as Tamiflu.
In the 241 known cases of bird flu, experts found, and particularly in the 13th case, unusually high levels of virus in their bodies and consequently, had high levels of chemicals known as 'cytokines' and 'chemokines, which basically triggers the immune system's inflammatory response. These chemicals, some of which are produced in cells lining the narrowest passages in the lungs, draw in white blood cells to attack invaders. But in doing so, can flood the lungs causing deadly pneumonia.
This is where the immune system, in trying to do its job, does part of the damage.
This effect known as 'the cytokine storm' is the present leading theory as to why so many young, previously healthy individuals, died in the 1918-1919 pandemic known as the 'Spanish Flu'. Young adults have generally stronger immune systems, but during World War I, military camps described whole rows of men turning blue-black as they struggled to breath and died.
What's even scarier is that previously, it was thought that the avian flu was not easily transmitted between humans, because unlike seasonal flu, the virus attached itself to receptors found deep in the lungs. But now, further studies have shown a surprisingly high level of viral loads in nose and throat swabs!
In further world conference news on the 'bird flu', as recent as early October of this year, it was further revealed that the risk of a pandemic was increasing, since clinical studies have shown that resistance to the two primary anti-viral drugs, the Tamiflu and Amantadine drugs have already occurred.
As a matter of fact, a briefing paper prepared by the Britain's Cabinet officer in the preparation of a possible pandemic emergency, suggested or estimated that 700,000 could die in Britain, in a worst-case scenario.
