Scientists urge meeting on weaponized flu threat
CDC should list flu as bioterrorism threat
In underscoring the threat of influenza as a weapon of bioterrorism, concerned clinicians recommended the following seven measures:
1. The World Health Organization and the Centers for Disease Control and Prevention (CDC) should bring together experts in influenza, bioterrorism, health policy, international law, and ethics to study this matter. Authorities should recognize that smallpox-based lessons drawn from exercises such as Dark Winter are not all applicable to weaponized influenza. Depending on their other public health needs and resources and their likelihood of being targeted, countries might consider only some of the steps listed below, which are suggested in particular for the United States. The CDC should advance influenza as a critical agent in priority as a bioterrorism threat.
2. Physicians, nurses and their organizations, insurers; and health officials should increase efforts to immunize those for whom immunization currently is recommended. The policy might be extended to mandatory immunization of medical personnel, or even universal immunization.
3. Increase the security of laboratories conducting influenza research, and of manufacturers and distributors of vaccines and antivirals.
4. Stockpile antiviral drugs and increase capacity to develop and produce vaccine. These also might be added to the push-packs for urgent distribution by the U.S. Department of Health and Human Services.
5. Consider a federal influenza gene-sequencing and vaccine development program, based at high-security government, pharmaceutical, and university laboratories.
6. Expand active seroepidemiological surveillance and offer incentives to reporting of clinical cases. The recently developed influenza assays make serological surveillance simple and fast, yet are little used by clinicians. New syndromic surveillance systems are required, capable of detecting incipient epidemics.
7. Consider federal programs to develop antiviral filters, biosensors, and inactivation systems (e.g., ultraviolet) for ventilation systems. Such efforts could be part of a broader viral protection program.1
Reference
1. Madjid M, Lillibridge S, Mirhaji P, et al. Influenza as a bioweapon. J R Soc Med 2003; 96:345-346.
In underscoring the threat of influenza as a weapon of bioterrorism, concerned clinicians recommended the following seven measures:You have reached your article limit for the month. Subscribe now to access this article plus other member-only content.
- Award-winning Medical Content
- Latest Advances & Development in Medicine
- Unbiased Content