Roche in $43.7bln bid for last Genentech shares Aug 18, 2008
In the core pharmaceutical operations, sales of its Tamiflu influenza medication fell 71 percent as governments slowed stockpile purchases against a backdrop of easing concerns over an H5N1 avian flu pandemic. This weakness was offset by its 'blockbuster' cancer treatments -- MabThera, Avastin and Herceptin -- which accounted for 7. (Yahoo News -- Pharmaceutical Industry News)
1918 flu survivors' antibodies helpful for anti-bird flu fight Aug 18, 2008
Patients are treated for the 1918 flu pandemic in a ward at Fort Riley Kansas ... BEIJING, Aug. 18 (Xinhuanet) -- Antibodies from survivors of the most devastating 1918 influenza pandemic still protect against the virus, providing a new approach to battle future epidemics that could be triggered by bird flu. (Xinhuanet, China)
Flu Fight Back To Future Aug 18, 2008
SURVIVORS of the flu virus that killed 50million people in 1918 could hold the key to making drugs to combat a bird flu pandemic ... Dr Crowe said: "This demonstrates survivors of the 1918 flu pandemic have highly functional virusneutralising antibodies to this uniquely virulent virus.". (Glasgow Daily Record)
• Bacteria played a role in 1918 pandemic flu deaths, scientists say Aug 18, 2008
Bacteria played a role in 1918 pandemic flu deaths, scientists say - Los Angeles Times ... National Museum of Health and Medicine The 1918 pandemic flu swept the globe, killing an estimated 50 million people ... Bacteria played a role in 1918 pandemic flu deaths, scientists say. (Q13.com, WA)
Survivors of 1918 flu pandemic protected with a lifetime immunity to virus Aug 18, 2008
The study entitled "Neutralizing antibodies derived from the B cells of 1918 influenza pandemic survivors," was released for advanced online publication by the journal Nature ... An estimated 50 million people were killed by the 1918 flu pandemic worldwide ... "Ninety years after survivors encountered the 1918 pandemic influenza virus, we collected antibody-producing B cells from them, and successfully isolated B cells that produce antibodies that block the viral infection," said contributing... (EurekAlert!)
1918 flu antibodies resurrected from elderly survivors Aug 18, 2008
Ninety years after the sweeping destruction of the 1918 flu pandemic, researchers at Monroe Carell Jr. Children's Hospital at Vanderbilt have recovered antibodies to the virus from elderly survivors of the original outbreak ... The influenza pandemic of 1918 killed nearly 50 million people worldwide, many of whom were young, healthy adults ... With fears of another looming flu pandemic stoked by the emergence of "bird flu" in Asia, researchers have wanted to study the 1918 virus and the immune... (EurekAlert!)
Uganda: New Strain of Bird Flu Poses a Major Threat Aug 17, 2008
The acting World Health Organisation (WHO) Representative in Uganda, Dr Jean Baptiste Tapko, said a global state of alert to the pandemic influenza has been declared ... He was addressing a Kampala symposium that is drafting a code of ethics for pandemic influenza detection and response in Africa ... Dr Tapko said the emergence of H5NI strain of influenza virus would mark the beginning of an influenza pandemic. (allAfrica.com)
Avian Flu Breakthrough: Virus Detection 'in Two Hours' Aug 17, 2008
At present influenza immunity relates only to specific strains and simply does not exist in the event of a new pandemic outbreak. The ongoing outbreaks and spread of the highly pathogenic H5N1 virus in poultry and wild birds have led to fears that a subtype that is transmissible from human to human could emerge. (TheMedGuru)
AHIMA Supports CMS Steps to Adopt ICD-10 Upgrades Aug 16, 2008
"Once implemented in the US, ICD-10 will significantly improve our nation's ability to provide information comparable to 21st century medicine and its current understanding of disease. Moreover, ICD-10 will better allow for the measurement of quality patient care and the international exchange of public health, pandemic, research information and information that allows for policy decisions related to healthcare and healthcare systems.". SOURCE AHIMA. (PR Newswire)
Ohio's ad warning of flu pandemic overdone? Aug 16, 2008
Ohio's ad warning of flu pandemic overdone ... Ohio's ad warning of flu pandemic overdone ... An ominous voice ticks through the last century's encounters with pandemic flu, informing us that more Americans died from these outbreaks than died in World War I.. (Cleveland.com)
HIV cases on the increase in Dormaa Aug 16, 2008
Madam Iddrisah said 15-49 year bracket remained the worst-hit and that the youth are still adamant to calls to adopt lifestyles that could steer them away from the pandemic. She said the municipal health directorate had, in a bid to diversity methods to get the youth to embrace attitudinal change, launched a month-long counselling and testing exercise dubbed "Know your status" to offer counselling and testing to volunteers free of charge. (Ghana Web, Ghana)
Personalized immunotherapy to fight HIV/AIDS Aug 16, 2008
While more research needs to be done, this new target may lead to an innovative therapeutic approach to fight the AIDS pandemic. . (EurekAlert!)
Pandemic Potential Of H9N2 Avian Influenza Viruses Aug 15, 2008
However, aerosol transmission was not observed, a key factor in potentially pandemic strains ... (May 31, 2007) Veterinarians who work with birds are at increased risk for infection with avian influenza virus and should be among those with priority access to pandemic influenza vaccines and antivirals ... 11, 2007) The international science community is not doing enough to track the many avian influenza viruses that might cause the next pandemic, according to new. (Science Daily)
Randolph County included in flu readiness study Aug 15, 2008
Randolph County is one of 13 counties recently evaluated by a Purdue University research team working to gauge Indiana's planning for the event of an outbreak of pandemic influenza. The study found that panic, staffing issues, and geographic boundaries are some of the challenges that public health experts need to address as they create a comprehensive pandemic flu readiness plan ... "Avery said counties that border other states may experience nonresidents seeking treatment in their area. Other... (Winchester News-Gazette, IN)
Airport test to stop arrival of Sars and flu 'pointless' Aug 15, 2008
Screening for flu or Sars at UK airports to try to stop a pandemic taking hold in Britain will not work, warns an article in this week's British Medical Journal. Many people could be incubating the infection when tested but not show positive results because flight times are not long enough to allow flu or Sars to develop to the point of detection. (Yahoo News -- SARS)
Bird flu alert Aug 15, 2008
What happens when a pandemic breaks out. MIKE Jakarta. (Jakarta Post, Indonesia -- Editorial)
Portable machine to detect bird flu Aug 15, 2008
A rapid test could save thousands of lives in the event of a pandemic by identifying cases to just two hours ... It could then gain the ability to pass easily from person to person and perhaps lead to a dangerous global pandemic, they fear. (Hindu)
Hope over 'quick' bird flu test Aug 14, 2008
It could then gain the ability to pass easily from person to person and perhaps lead to a dangerous global pandemic, they fear ... Dr McNally said: "There's a large train of thought that one of the best ways of dealing with avian influenza is by detection and containment. "The ability to detect and type the influenza virus immediately is essential in setting up controls as quickly as possible to minimise the spread of any potential pandemic virus. (BBC News)
Researchers fear other bird flu virus may cause pandemic... Aug 14, 2008
Researchers fear other bird flu virus may cause pandemic ... Researchers fear other bird flu virus may cause pandemic ... US scientists Wednesday raised fears that a different strain of the bird flu virus could mutate to become more easily transmissible among humans and trigger a pandemic. (The Drudge Report)
DelSite Reports Second Quarter 2008 Results Aug 14, 2008
These attributes make DelSite's nasal powder influenza vaccine particularly well suited for pandemic preparedness when such products may need to be stockpiled for extended periods of time and rapidly distributed and self-administered under emergency conditions. In addition, DelSite's technology is being evaluated by private companies and government agencies for a variety of therapeutic and prophylactic applications. (Primezone Releases)
Stephen King, Ready for Download Aug 14, 2008
com), available for purchase at iTunes and Amazon, and even downloadable to cell phones ironic, given that in King's recent novel Cell, the mobile-phone network became a conduit for a global pandemic. The experiment is an example of the kind of outside-the-box thinking that publishers have had to engage in to try to reverse a steep decline in readers. (Time.com)
The pension-plan cookie thief Aug 13, 2008
But the desire for free stuff is pandemic, and Frosty Woodbridge at NewsWithViews. com talks about this very point when he says that "Our US Senate along with Obama and McCain protects the interests of 20 million illegal aliens that take jobs from American citizens! Has either man stepped up to stop 400,000 annual illegal alien anchor babies and their mothers from sucking out of the US taxpayer's pocket? Even while 86 hospitals in California and Arizona are bankrupted out of existence because of... (Asia Times Online)
Rwanda: New Aids Drug on Trial Aug 13, 2008
The global search for biomedical actions to help fight against HIV/AIDS pandemic has discovered new treatment options. The options include novel HIV possible treatment procedure called Pre-Exposure Prophylaxis (PrEP), clinical trials and Tenofovir Disoproxil Fumarate (TDF) drug use. (allAfrica.com)
Flu season not far away Aug 13, 2008
COXSACKIE Coxsackie Town Supervisor Alex Betke was stricken with Pandemic Flu Tuesday night. The Greene County Department of Public Health kicked off the Coxsackie Town Board meeting Tuesday with a Pandemic Influenza informational session, and Betke was just one causality among a room full during a demonstration by Director of Public Health Marie Cross Ostoyich, who says one in three people contract the virus when Pandemic Flu strikes ... Together the trio explained what Pandemic Flu is, how to... (Catskill Daily Mail, NY)
Activists Present AIDS Ads To Increase Pandemic Awareness Aug 12, 2008
Due to the alarming number of HIV/AIDS cases worldwide, the activists knew that, in order to teach people about the pandemic, they should come up with extremely ingenious ideas. In an attempt to do this, they made posters showing flying superheroes in shape of condoms and huge insects, signifying the AIDS virus, having sex with unsuspicious victims. (eFluxMedia)
Canopus Biopharma and Leading Chinese Researcher Team Up to Treat Avian Influenza, to Prevent Possible Pandemic Aug 12, 2008
"It is possible that higher doses of statin than those used in this study may result in even greater efficacy. StatC(TM) also appeared to be more effective when administered preventatively." With current positive results, Canopus BioPharma is looking to form a co-development agreement or licensing arrangements with pharmaceutical companies and Government health authorities interested in providing more economical and universal treatment for their populations in the event of a pandemic ... Once... (PR Newswire)
WHO increases priority diseases for surveillance Aug 12, 2008
The emerging and re-emerging diseases include severe acute respiratory syndrome, avian and pandemic influenza, lishmaniasis, pertussis, cikungunya fever, non-communicable diseases, hypertension, diabetes mellitus and asthma. Dr Lawson Ahadzie, head of the Disease and Surveillance Unit of the Ghana Health Service, said this at the opening of a two-day meeting of the Unit to revise Integrated Disease Surveillance and Response (IDSR) Technical Guidelines. (Ghana Web, Ghana)
A Health Care App to Tackle Disasters Aug 12, 2008
According to the PDRTC site, the city s dense population, industry and high international profile, Los Angeles is at increased risk for pandemic influenza, environmental accident, biochemical incident and terrorist attacks. Yet, as of today, health care providers are to respond when the next crisis occurs. (CIO Information Network)
Thirteen Indonesian villagers clear of bird flu Aug 11, 2008
This would mean that the virus could have mutated into a form that can pass easily among people, which would trigger a pandemic ... However experts continue to worry that the H5N1 virus will ultimately mutate into a pandemic strain that could sweep the globe, with the potential to kill millions and decimate economies. (News-Medical.net)
Uganda: Makerere's DR Katabira Elected IAS Head Aug 11, 2008
An estimated 33 million people are living with HIV worldwide and since the beginning of the pandemic 25-years ago, more than 25 million people have died of Aids-related illnesses. Speakers at the opening session included UN Secretary General Ban Ki-moon, Keren Jamina Dunaway Gonzales, an HIV-positive 13-year-old youth worker and the President of Mexico Filipe Calder;n. (allAfrica.com)
The Nanny State and the Common Good Meet at the Home Depot Aug 11, 2008
Adding together the obsessive number of advertisements for drugs against the pandemic of Erectile Dysfunction (is a Telethon next. and the plethora of posts by men whining that a girl stole their dangly bits, I would guess that one of the saddest side effects of Boomer Men turning 60 is that they now have returned full time to coddling their wee-wees, once they find them again of course. (Townhall.com)
Federal CDC director to speak at pandemic conference Aug 11, 2008
Dr. Julie Gerberding, director of the federal Centers for Disease Control and Prevention, will be the keynote speaker at a pandemic flu preparedness conference Logistics Health Inc. will host at its La Crosse headquarters from 10 to 3 p.m. Sept. 4 ... Participants will learn the latest on the pandemic threat, corporate antiviral distribution strategies, public and private sector partnerships, and various legal implications ... LHI offers pandemic preparedness services. (La Crosse Tribune, WI)
Proclaiming the love of Jesus Christ to those with HIV/AIDS Aug 10, 2008
Rick Warren explains why he and his wife Kay have attended the 17th International AIDS Conference in Mexico City and how he first got involved with this global pandemic ... We think this is where the church needs to be any time a major issue of global proportion like the AIDS pandemic is around, said Rick Warren ... I didnt realize that AIDS was such a pandemic. (Christian Today -- Australia)
Bush Says He Is Optimistic About China's Future Aug 10, 2008
"We have also cooperated on other shared challenges, from fighting pandemic disease to opposing North Korea's nuclear weapons programs.". But Bush balanced his praise for China with the reminder of the need for more changes in how the Chinese government operates. (Fox News)
Uganda:Fight Against Aids Faltering? Aug 10, 2008
The country has won international acclaim for its 20-year campaign against the AIDS pandemic, but the latest numbers lead some activists believe Uganda is now losing ground ... "Kigozi says Uganda's challenge is that over time its HIV prevention programme -- built on open public acknowledgment of the pandemic and boosted by the participation of celebrities like HIV+ musician Philly Bongoley Lutaaya -- has lost some of its power as complacency sets in among the population.He says Uganda has... (allAfrica.com)
President's Radio Address Aug 10, 2008
We have also cooperated on other shared challenges, from fighting pandemic disease to opposing North Korea's nuclear weapons programs. At the same time, America has spoken candidly and consistently about our concerns over the Chinese government's behavior. (White House News Releases)
Human rights at the core of AIDS control, conference told Aug 10, 2008
"Let's be perfectly clear: Failure to enact a comprehensive, sustained and multipronged attack on the pandemic represents a crime against those infected, those affected and those susceptible. Indeed, it represents a crime against humanity," Dr. Montaner said. Mark Harrington, executive director of the New York-based Treatment Action Group, said treating HIV-AIDS is a good investment because it strengthens health systems and improves access to health care. (Globe and Mail)
GPs might take flight in bird flu crisis Aug 9, 2008
A SIGNIFICANT minority of GPs might stay at home and decline to treat patients in the event of a bird flu pandemic, for fear that they or their families might become infected ... Annette Braunack-Mayer, one of the authors of the MJA paper, says from one point of view it is surprising any doctors would seriously consider lying low during a pandemic, and that ethics guidelines ought to make clear to doctors that it is their duty to treat patients during times of emergency. (The Australian)
Pandemic flu planning 'too slow' Aug 9, 2008
Pandemic flu planning 'too slow ... The UK government has been too slow in formulating plans to combat a potentially lethal flu pandemic, a leading expert has warned ... But at the height of a pandemic that would mean delivering more than one million courses of drug each day. (Yahoo News -- Influenza)
Face Masks Analyzed As Aid in Flu Pandemic Aug 9, 2008
A flu pandemic conjures up images of streets and buses full of people going about their business with masks covering the lower half of their faces ... But how much protection any would provide is largely unknown -- as is the question whether they could be safely washed and reused if there were not enough new ones in a pandemic. (Yahoo News -- Influenza)
Scientist seeks quicker Tamiflu Aug 9, 2008
Tamiflu is the anti-viral drug of choice in the world preparations for possible pandemic flu. The Swiss manufacturer Roche has given the World Health Organization five million courses of treatment to help stamp out any incipient outbreak of the disease at source. (Yahoo News -- Influenza)
Flu pandemic tops risk register Aug 8, 2008
A flu pandemic is the gravest threat to UK security, according to a new National Risk Register being published ... BBC security correspondent Frank Gardner said that while officials insist the register was not intended to rank dangers in any kind of priority, it is clear that pandemic flu emerges as the gravest threat to national security. (BBC News -- UK)
Africa: Move to Criminalise Aids 'Bad for Africa' Aug 8, 2008
Africa bears the brunt of the HIV/AIDS pandemic, and leaders on the continent are battling to curb the rate of new infections: two-thirds of the 33-million people with the disease live south of the Sahara. Most don't know they are infected, and many African countries are desperately trying to persuade more people to get tested. (allAfrica.com)
New guidance given on autism care Aug 8, 2008
Page last updated at 12:44 GMT, Wednesday, 2 April 2008 13:44 UK. The public health minister has announced new guidelines on autism. (Yahoo News -- Autism)
US sex-abstinence drive 'flawed' Aug 8, 2008
Page last updated at 02:13 GMT, Friday, 1 December 2006. US sex-abstinence drive 'flawed. (Yahoo News -- Birth Control)
Police evict Tamils from Colombo Aug 8, 2008
" SRI LANKA CRISIS BACKGROUND PROFILES HAVE YOUR SAY RELATED INTERNET LINKS The BBC is not responsible for the content of external internet sites MOST E-MAILED Nigerian advises against 86 wives What's your boss reading? Rapid rise of 'luxury' campsites Oil 'could hit $200 within years' Flu pandemic 'gravest risk to UK' MOST READ Russian tanks enter South Ossetia Beijing Olympics ceremony begins Nigerian advises against 86 wives Apology over prince cancer story Weekly world news quiz FEATURES,... (Yahoo News -- Sri Lanka)
Roche in $43.7bln bid for last Genentech shares Aug 8, 2008
In the core pharmaceutical operations, sales of its Tamiflu influenza medication fell 71 percent as governments slowed stockpile purchases against a backdrop of easing concerns over an H5N1 avian flu pandemic. This weakness was offset by its 'blockbuster' cancer treatments -- MabThera, Avastin and Herceptin -- which accounted for 7. (Yahoo News -- Pharmaceutical Industry News)
President Bush Attends Dedication of United States Embassy Beijing Aug 8, 2008
We're also cooperating to fight pandemic diseases and respond to natural disasters. And through the six-party talks, we're working together to ensure that the Korean Peninsula is free of nuclear weapons. (White House News Releases)
Global Food Crisis Threatens HIV Control Aug 8, 2008
A spike in food prices that is projected to continue in coming years demands that governments and humanitarian groups address food security as part of their work against the HIV and AIDS pandemic, said Dr. Ramon Soto, World Vision's regional director for HIV and AIDS in Latin America and the Caribbean, at the XVII International AIDS Conference in Mexico City. "The outlook is serious in our region," said Dr. Soto. (AlertNet)
New Decision Model Seeks To Avert Flu Vaccine Mismatch Of 2007-2008 Season Aug 8, 2008
7, 2008) To avoid producing vaccines that treat the wrong strains during flu season, the FDA should consider deferring some of its selections as well as other changes to the vaccine composition, according to a study by two decision analysts published in a journal of the Institute for Operations Research and the Management Sciences (INFORMS). Repeated Commit-or-Defer Decisions with a Deadline: The Influenza Vaccine Composition is by Laura J. Kornish of the University of Colorado and Ralph L.... (Science Daily)
We can't ignore the AIDS plight of the disabled Aug 8, 2008
MEXICO CITY The AIDS pandemic is not a single global epidemic. Rather, it is a series of cascading, overlapping outbreaks of disease sweeping over communities the way waves pound relentlessly at a shore. (Globe and Mail)
Greatest threat to Britain is a flu pandemic that could kill ... Aug 8, 2008
Greatest threat to Britain is a flu pandemic that could kill 750,000, warns Government report ... Disposal of dead turkeys following an outbreak of bird flu at a farm in Suffolk: Bird flu could be the cause of a flu pandemic in this country ... The greatest threat facing Britain is a flu pandemic that could kill 750,000 people, a Government report will warn today. (Daily Mail)
Africa:Continental Leaders Launch New Aids Initiative Aug 7, 2008
Africa is the region hardest hit by the HIV/AIDS pandemic, with countries south of the Sahara home to 22-million people with the disease, two-thirds of the world's total. "Despite our best efforts and achievements, the transmission of HIV continues at high rates in southern Africa," he told reporters at the 17th International AIDS Conference. (allAfrica.com)
UN official urges more actions in fight against AIDS Aug 7, 2008
MEXICO CITY, Aug. 6 (Xinhua) -- Head of the Joint United Nations Program on HIV/AIDS (UNAIDS) urged Wednesday more actions in the fight against HIV/AIDS, saying "words alone do not work to fight the AIDS pandemic.". Peter Piot, the executive director of UNAIDS, made the remarks at the on-going 17th International AIDS Conference here, which runs from Aug. 3 to Aug. 8. (Xinhuanet, China)
13 Indonesians hospitalized with bird flu symptoms Aug 7, 2008
Bird flu remains hard for people to catch, but health experts worry the virus could mutate into a form that passes easily between humans, possibly triggering a pandemic that could kill millions. So far most human cases have been linked to contact with infected birds. (Erie Times-News, PA)
Inflation may increase AIDS risk: UN Aug 6, 2008
Delegates at a major AIDS conference in Mexico cited the cases of fisherwomen in the Pacific and women in Kenya desperate for food being forced to sell their bodies, adding to concerns of a new twist in the spread of the deadly pandemic. "Food is such a basic need that you can see people really going to great lengths," said Fadzai Mukonoweshuro of the UN's Food and Agriculture Organization in southern Africa. (India Times, India)
Was Pneumonia Real Killer in 1918 Flu Pandemic? Aug 6, 2008
Experts: Pneumonia Was Real Killer in 1918 Flu Pandemic ... Government efforts to prepare for a modern day influenza pandemic should include a stockpile of antibiotics because bacteria, not the flu virus, were the real killers in 1918, researchers say ... "We agree completely that bacterial pneumonia played a major role in the mortality of the 1918 pandemic," Anthony Fauci, author of next month's article and NIAID director, told New Scientist. (Fox News)
State behind ominous flu pandemic ads Aug 6, 2008
The TV public service announcement uses an empty football stadium, a classroom with no students and a graveyard to illustrate past pandemics ... But they're concerned about dwindling federal grant money to keep Ohio prepared for a pandemic. (WKRC.com, OH)
Listening needed to communicate bird flu risks Aug 6, 2008
The news terrified the nation because the government and health experts suspected the H5N1 virus had mutated into a human-to-human virus which might soon create the world's next lethal influenza pandemic. Since then most journalists have based their reports on avian influenza by listening to and gathering information from government officials as well as from health and animal experts. (Jakarta Post, Indonesia -- Editorial)
Commentary: AIDS chief still hopeful for cure Aug 6, 2008
Cure critical to attempts to contain the pandemic, he says ... This is the first International AIDS Conference to be held in Latin America, a region hard-hit by the HIV/AIDS pandemic, but also a place where exceptional scientific and public health advances have been made ... Despite what you might hear, the AIDS pandemic is still raging. (CNN -- Health)
UN Chief Urges End to Prejudice Over HIV/Aids Aug 5, 2008
Secretary-General Ban Ki-moon has called for bolstered global efforts to tackle HIV/AIDS, stressing at the world s largest forum on the pandemic that the virus impedes economic development and that discrimination against people living with HIV remains widespread. "Most countries still have a long way to go to meet the goal" set two years ago at the General Assembly to move towards universal access to HIV prevention, treatment, care and support by 2010. (allAfrica.com)
Africa: Aids Funding is Justified, Say Activists Aug 5, 2008
Calls for less spending on HIV and AIDS are unwarranted, because the pandemic remains an emergency that needs continued effort and funding, speakers at the 17th International AIDS Conference in Mexico City have said. "The epidemic is not over anywhere in the world," said Peter Piot, executive director of UNAIDS, at a press conference ahead of the opening ceremony on Sunday. (allAfrica.com)
Niger: Border On High-Alert for Bird Flu Aug 5, 2008
"People become complacent when you predict an emergency and it doesn't come. However, the risk of a pandemic hasn't disappeared. The virus has been good to humans thus far; even though it is highly mutative, it does not yet easily infect humans. But we don't know what will happen. My advice is deal with this problem in poultry, then, we won't have to deal with it in humans.". Relevant Links. (allAfrica.com)
Back to basics in search for HIV vaccine... Aug 5, 2008
In a workshop at the International AIDS Conference, they said the AIDS pandemic would only be defeated by a preventative vaccine, rather than treating people who are already infected. But they admitted there have been many setbacks in crafting such a shield, and some advocated a return to fundamentals, and said it is time to draw lessons from failure. (The Drudge Report)
Preparing for a pandemic Aug 5, 2008
If they fall on a surface, they could be picked up by another person, who may then infect themselves by later touching their mouth (see will bird flu lead to a pandemic. for more detailed background information on pandemics) ... In New Zealand, where pandemic planning has progressed further than most countries, the maximum length of time the borders can be closed is about three days. (Suite101.com)
