VIETNAM - AUGUST 17 AVIAN INFLUENZA REPORT

UNCLAS SECTION 01 OF 04 HANOI 002114 SIPDIS STATE FOR G, CA/OCS/ACS/EAP, EAP/EX, EAP/MLS, EAP/EP, INR, OES/STC (PBATES),OES/IHA (DSINGER AND NCOMELLA),AND MED STATE PASS TO USAID FOR ANE AND GH (DCARROLL, SCLEMENTS AND PCHAPLIN) STATE PASS TO USTR (EBRYAN) STATE PASS TO HHS/OGHA (WSTIEGER, EELVANDER AND ABHAT) USDA PASS TO APHIS DEPARTMENT OF DEFENSE FOR OSD/ISA/AP (LSTERN) BANGKOK FOR RMO, CDC, USAID (JMACARTHUR AND MBRADY) ROME FOR FAO SIPDIS E.O. 12958: N/A TAGS: TBIO KFLU AMED AMGT CASC EAGR PINR SOCI VM SUBJECT: VIETNAM - AUGUST 17 AVIAN INFLUENZA REPORT HANOI 00002114 001.2 OF 004 SENSITIVE BUT UNCLASSIFIED REF: HANOI 1989 AND PREVIOUS ¶1. (U) Summary. There have been no confirmed cases of AI outbreaks in humans or poultry, despite suspected cases at the beginning of August. A 35 year-old man from Kien Giang province, hospitalized with severe influenza symptoms, has tested negative for H5N1. Ducks from two flocks in Tay Ninh Province, suspected of having perished from AI, have also tested negative for the virus, according to Tay Ninh provincial officials. However, 107 ducks and swans in HCMC and southern Ben Tre Province have been culled after being identified as carriers of an H5 virus. One chicken, smuggled from China into northern Lang Son Province, has tested positive for the H5N1 virus. Vietnamese Prime Minister Nguyen Tan Dung announced on August 8 a temporary ban on the import of live poultry and poultry products from countries affected by avian influenza and upheld the GVN's decision to prohibit the raising of poultry in major urban areas. HCMC authorities called on district steering boards to strictly implement the city's prohibition on raising poultry and allocated an additional VND 320 billion (USD 20 million) for avian influenza preparedness. The Ministry of Agriculture and Rural Development (MARD) will purchase between 30 to 50 million doses of avian influenza poultry vaccines from Russia. The Central Epidemic Prevention Institute announced on August 8 that it plans to test an anti-type A/H5N1 vaccine on humans this October. The Government of Japan will fund the construction of an infectious disease laboratory. USAID and the Centers for Disease Control (CDC) held a coordination meeting with AI implementing partners, including Abt Associates, which will begin AI prevention programs in Vietnam. End Summary. ¶2. (SBU) A 35 year-old man from the southern province of Kien Giang has tested negative for the H5N1 virus. The patient, known as N.V.C. 35, was hospitalized after exhibiting severe influenza symptoms including extensive pulmonary scaring. The individual had apparently handled duck carcasses prior to becoming ill. Dr. Nguyen Van Binh, Deputy Director of the Preventive Medicine Department at the Pasteur Institute in HCMC, confirmed the negative result to local media. (Note: While the initial result of the test was negative, H5N1 infection is not entirely ruled out. Even in the best case scenario, laboratory tests do not reach 100 percent sensitivity, as the timing and collection of the correct viral specimen are crucial. Multiple and repeated specimens must be collected and analyzed, including tracheal aspirates and, if the patient survives, a convalescent serum specimen for antibody testing. The case in question should still be classified as under investigation pending additional tests. End Note) ¶3. (U) The official website of Tay Ninh, a province bordering both Cambodia and HCMC, reported on August 5 that ducks suspected of perishing from AI have tested negative for the virus. On August 3 Thanh Nhien Daily reported that the ducks, from two flocks in Tay Ninh, were suspected of having died from H5N1. Tay Ninh's Director of Animal Health, Ton That Han, reported that blood samples had been forwarded to the HCMC Regional Animal Health Center for testing. According to Director Han, both the Tay Ninh and HCMC tests came back negative. Provincial animal health authorities suspect the duck deaths were the result of a localized cholera outbreak and not AI. ¶4. (SBU) Animal health authorities slaughtered 54 ducks in the HANOI 00002114 002.2 OF 004 southern province of Ben Tre on August 10, following routine post-vaccination specimen testing. The ducks, located on two farms in the province, tested positive for an H5 strain. Mai Van Hiep, Director of the Department of Animal Health for Ben Tre Province, reported to Reuters News Service that the ducks, while healthy, were culled as a precautionary measure. Previously, animal health authorities culled 53 storks at a theme park in HCMC following random tests that indicated the birds were carriers of the H5 strain. (Note: Despite these occurrences, which were reported in the local press and reftels, the GVN continues to maintain an official stance that no AI outbreaks have occurred in poultry since December. End Note) ¶5. (U) One of thirty tested chickens, all smuggled from China into northern Lang Son Province, tested positive for the H5N1 virus, Lang Son animal health authorities reported on August 11. As previously reported, a Washington Post investigative report dated July 30 claimed that smugglers haul more than 1,500 contraband chickens a day into Lang Son Province, one of six Vietnamese provinces along the Chinese border, violating the strict ban on illegally imported chickens. Meanwhile, 60 chickens in Lang Son markets tested negative for H5N1. Provincial veterinary officials report that up to 70,000 kg of chicken meat and 180,000 eggs smuggled across the border from China have been destroyed in recent months. Local authorities report having 1,000 liters of chemical solvents and 500 kg of chemical powders available to destroy further confiscated contraband goods. ¶6. (SBU) Vietnamese Prime Minister Nguyen Tan Dung announced on August 8 a temporary ban on the import of live poultry and poultry products from countries affected by avian influenza. Addressing the National Steering Committee for Prevention of Bird Flu and H5N1 Virus on Humans in Hanoi on August 8, the Prime Minister called for tighter controls on the trading and transportation of poultry, further action against poultry smuggling, and the re-establishment of nationwide quarantine stations. The Prime Minister also upheld the GVN's decision to prohibit the raising of poultry in major urban areas. (Note: In a meeting with Embassy personnel, a municipal employee in the Hanoi Department of Animal Health admitted that while live poultry markets were effectively banned in large urban centers, GVN powers of enforcement were limited. Dr. Nam commented that police officers could theoretically penalize those selling live chickens, but this is unlikely because there is no "benefit" (The employee said as he rubbed his fingers together in the sign of money) for the policeman. End Note) ¶7. (U) Vietnam's Minister of Agricultural and Rural Development (MARD) Cao Duc Phat signed telegram No. 23 BNN/QD on August 15, urging the implementation of key measures to prevent further outbreaks of AI. The telegram requests greater public outreach and educational programs, increased AI surveillance, the vaccination of all at-risk poultry flocks by the end of 2006, and increased bio-security and inspection protocols for poultry slaughter, transportation, and trade. ¶8. (U) The HCMC People's Committee has ordered district steering boards to strictly implement the city's prohibition on raising poultry until February 2007. The People's Committee also called for stricter examination protocols at the city's four quarantine stations and increased poultry vaccinations in surrounding rural areas. HCMC authorities agreed on August 8 to earmark an additional VND 320 billion (USD 20 million) for avian influenza preparedness in HANOI 00002114 003.2 OF 004 HCMC, including the purchase of additional antiviral medications. This decision comes after Le Truong Giang, Vice Director of the HCMC Department of Health, announced that the city would need between VND 100 billion (USD 6.3 million) and VND 320 billion (USD 20 million) in additional funding to prepare the city for additional outbreaks. All local hospitals and city avian influenza task forces have been instructed to prepare for possible cases of avian influenza in humans, reported HCMC Director of Health Nguyen The Dung. ¶9. (U) Local daily Saigon Liberation reported on August 15 that the Ministry of Agriculture and Rural Development (MARD) will purchase 30-50 million doses of avian influenza poultry vaccines from Russia for use in late 2006 and early 2007. The purchase of the Russian vaccines will complement existing stockpiles. This action comes after reports of vaccine misuse in several provinces. Authorities in the central coastal province of Quang Nam reportedly had to discard 726,000 doses of the vaccine after they expired, despite the fact that only half of the province's 2.3 million at-risk poultry have been vaccinated. ¶10. (U) The Central Epidemic Prevention Institute announced on August 8 that it plans to test an anti-type A/H5N1 vaccine on humans this October. The Institute will test the vaccine on two groups of volunteers, consisting of 30 and 100 individuals. The Nha Trang Vaccine and Bio-Medical Project Manufacturing Institute in central Khanh Hoa province had previously tested five batches of an H5N1 vaccine made from chicken embryos on mice, guinea-pigs, and chickens. Test animals continued to show resistance to the virus at forty days post inoculation. The Central Epidemic Prevention Institute's proposed trials will be the first H5N1 influenza vaccine trials on humans in Vietnam. ¶11. (U) The Government of Japan will provide JPY 927 million (USD 8 million) to build an infectious disease research laboratory in Vietnam. Dr. Nguyen Tran Hien, Director of the Central Institute for Hygiene and Epidemiology, announced the plan as part of a greater GOJ initiative to enhance the GVN's ability to respond to and control infectious diseases in humans. The GOJ plans to fund the creation of a mobile laboratory, designed for early detection of H5N1 in humans, later this month. ¶12. (SBU) USAID and the Center for Disease Control (CDC) held a coordination meeting on August 15 with AI implementing partners to ensure that Behavior Change and Communication (BCC) programs don't overlap in scope or content. Currently, USAID funds the Academy for Educational Development (AED) and CDC is reviewing CARE International's USD 325,000 project proposal (BCC programs). US-based Abt Associates Inc. will begin working on community-level projects in Vietnam to prevent and control the spread of AI. In close collaboration with the UN Food and Agricultural Organization (FAO),World Health Organization (WHO) and the Academy for Educational Development (AED),the USD 800,000 project will work with international NGOs such as CARE International and Population Services International (PSI) in targeted geographic regions that are at high risk of avian influenza outbreaks. These activities include delivering key prevention messages and implementing strategies to minimize high risk behaviors, working with human and animal health workers to enhance their ability to recognize and report suspected AI cases, and developing new approaches for enhancing biosecurity on poultry farms. USAID and the new Abt Associates Chief of Party held separate introductory meetings with MARD's Director of International Cooperation, the Department of Animal Health, the FAO, WHO, and HANOI 00002114 004.2 OF 004 UNDP. ¶13. (U) As of August 17, 2006: -- No human AI deaths since October 29, 2005 -- No human AI cases since November 14, 2005 -- No AI outbreaks in poultry since the last reported incident on December 17, 2005 in Cao Bang Province. (Note: Vietnamese authorities have confirmed the presence of H5N1 or H5 viruses in poultry in Ben Tre province, HCMC, and Lag Son province. End Note) ¶14. (U) This update report was prepared by U.S. Consulate General officer Alexander Whittington. MARINE