Bird Flu Center

The bird flu virus might find its way into North America and the United States as early as this fall, an expert in the field warns. Sharon Medcalf, associate director of the Center for Biopreparedness Education in Omaha, says that it’s most likely not a matter of if, but when. Although it is not yet sure what a possible mutation of the virus could produce, it is very likely that the highly pathogenic H5N1 of the virus will be carried into the continent and the US by migratory birds during this fall or winter. The government has been closely monitoring migratory birds throughout the country, in an attempt to detect the disease at its earliest point of entry. It is not known how quickly the virus will be able to spread, but with the disease already detected in mammals such as cats and tigers, it is very possible it will find a way to be transmitted from person to person, causing a world epidemic.