While neither the Geneva-based World Health Organization (WHO) nor the Center for Disease Control in Atlanta warn against traveling to countries where bird flu outbreaks have occurred, they both caution travelers. See Tips for Travelers for recommendations.
Bird Flu Endemic Countries
The Food and Agriculture Organization of the United Nations (FAO) and the World Animal Health Organization (OIE) consider that all of Asia is endemic for bird flu in birds. For a disease to be considered endemic, it must be recurrent and the recurrences occur because the disease remains in the country, meaning that outbreaks are not due to its import from another couuntry.
Some parts of Africa risk becoming endemic for bird flu. Nigeria and neighboring Niger both had significant bird flu outbreaks in birds in early 2006. In addition to Asia, On January 11, 2006, FAO issued a news release stating that Turkey could become a bird flu endemic country. Turkey has seen cases in poultry as well as in humans.
Maps of Bird Flu in Birds and Humans
For updated bird flu case information, see the WHO map of cases in poultry and wild birds since 2003 and this table of human cases of H5N1 since 2003. In Asia, Africa and Turkey, as in many other parts of the world, chickens are kept close to houses, open to contact with wild birds, and with humans.
Sources:
- Food and Agriculture Organization of the United Nations (FAO), FAO warns bird flu virus could become endemic in Turkey. See text: http://www.fao.org/newsroom/en/news/2006/1000208/index.html
- Food and Agriculture Organizations of the United Nations (FAO) Avian Influenza Technical Task Force. Update on the Avian Influenza Situation. FAOAIDE News, Avian Influenza Emergency. June 18, 2006. See text http://www.fao.org/docs/eims/upload/209858/AVIbull040.pdf
- World Health Organization (WHO). Recommendations for Travelers. November 2005. See text http://www.who.int/csr/disease/avian_influenza/travel2005_11_3/en/index.html
- Center for Disease Control. Outbreak notice, Human Infection with Avian Influenza A (H5N1) Virus Advice for Travelers. Originally published September 23, 2005 and updated July 12, 2006. See text http://www.cdc.gov/travel/other/avian_influenza_se_asia_2005.htm