Bird Flu :: Japan bird flu spreading in Miyazaki

It seems bird flu outbreak is spreading in Japan. A suspected outbreak of bird flu reported in the southwestern prefecture of Miyazaki, Japan.

In the latest suspected outbreak, 23 chickens were found dead and seven of 13 that were tested showed initial signs of bird flu.

Japan Health Officials are separately trying to determine whether the virus that killed dozens of chickens in the western prefecture of Okayama was the deadly H5N1 variety. Japan has confirmed only one human H5N1 infection, and no human deaths.

Hundreds of thousands of birds in Asia died due to a virus that has been dubbed the “bird flu.” The highly contagious illness is responsible for wiping out large numbers of poultry in Japan, South Korea, Taiwan and Vietnam. The particular strain of influenza which has been reported as causing the deaths is called H5N1.

Humans can contract the disease through close contact with infected birds, or with the feces of infected birds. It is not known to spread through human-to-human contact. There has been no indication that humans would get the disease through eating eggs or meat of sick birds.