More effective medication needed in fighting bird flu

Dicky Christanto ,  The Jakarta Post ,  Denpasar   |  Fri, 03/28/2008 1:28 PM  |  Bali

More effective medication is needed to fight the H5N1 virus that causes Avian Influenza, as symptoms of resistance toward Osetamivir, the current medicine, had appeared in bird flu patients in some regions, an official at an Avian Influenza Summit said.

"We have learnt some bird flu patients in Hong Kong and Vietnam have shown resistance to old medicines," head of the National Working Group on Avian Influenza Eradication Amin Subandrio told reporters at the summit held at Nusa Dua resort Thursday.

"That's why we gather here, to find out whether or not we are ready to tackle the possibility that people are becoming immune to bird flu medication," Amin said.

Representatives from 25 countries attended the two-day summit, including from the U.S., Japan, South Korea, Indonesia and Kenya, who discussed the need for new medication to fight the AI virus

An exhibition demonstrating medical breakthroughs in treating bird flu by pharmaceutical companies from participating countries was also held.

Many countries are currently using Osetamivir, locally known as Tamiflu, to treat patients diagnosed with bird flu.

Tamiflu must be given to bird flu patients early as it reacts with the virus while it is still in the patient's blood. Once the virus enters the patient's lungs, the tablet is not much use, Amin said.

"We must then mix it with other medication to avoid further damage," he said.

The disease has killed 105 of the 129 people who have contracted the disease in Indonesia.

Amin said Tamiflu was still needed to treat patients suffering from bird flu.

"But we must be very careful not to give this medication to people who haven't been officially diagnosed with bird flu. If we do, they could become resistant to the medication in future," he said.

With new bird flu medication expected to be available in five to ten years time, campaigns on the necessary precautions to take were essential to avoid the disease, Amin said.

Head of the Surveillance and Epidemiology division of the Agriculture Ministry, Muster Any Ragman Nor, said the campaign has generated promising results in some regions but had failed in some others.

"The campaign failed in slum areas where poultry breeders put their poultry cages near their houses. It is not that they are unaware of the new rule that prohibits this, but they lack the funds to build new cages outside the housing area," he said.

Separately, a group of activists from the Asia-Pacific's People for the Ethical Treatment of Animals (PETA) held a rally in front of the summit venue. Two of them wore giant chicken costumes and held a banner calling for people to stop eating meat and become vegetarian.

Ashley Fruno of PETA said people should really stop eating meat as it had long been known to be a source of human illness.

"Besides killing an animal just to get its meat is just another way of justifying slaughter. We should be more caring towards other creatures," Fruno, who has been a vegetarian for 12 years, said Wednesday.

She said the vegetarian lifestyle had been proven to prevent degenerative diseases such as heart attacks and high blood pressure.

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