Regional surveillance centre for Avian Influenza proposed at GMC
The central team of experts, who carried out an investigation to find out the origin and spread of H5N1 (bird flu) and the death of a girl from Narasaraopet in Palnadu district, had collected 20 samples during their visit the residence of the girl, a chicken shop and their surroundings
Vijayawada: A regional surveillance centre for influenza has been proposed for Guntur Medical College.
The central team of experts, who carried out an investigation to find out the origin and spread of H5N1 (bird flu) and the death of a girl from Narasaraopet in Palnadu district, had collected 20 samples during their visit the residence of the girl, a chicken shop and their surroundings.
Of these, 10 samples were given to the Virus Research and Diagnostic Laboratory at the Guntur Medical College. The lab is equipped with state-of-the-art equipment. It did tests and found all the samples were negative to H5N1.
The Centre’s Integrated Disease Surveillance Programme plays a significant role in sending the testing kits for avian influenza through the Pune-based National Institute of Virology to the proposed regional surveillance centre. There, it could test the samples for avian influenza. Earlier, there was H1N1 (swine flu) but no mutation of the virus H5N1 (bird flu) occurred.
Head of the Guntur Medical College microbiology department, Dr Jaya Lakshmi, said, “There is a proposal to set up a regional surveillance centre for avian influenza. We are already having VRDL and if testing kits are provided, we can test the samples for avian influenza.”
The state-level IDSP had come up with a proposal for setting up a regional surveillance centre for avian influenza in GMC.