New Delhi: Pre-emptive bird flu vaccination for human beings is set to be rolled out for the first time.
That distinction goes to Finland, which could launch the vaccine as soon as next week to some workers with exposure to animals, health authorities said.
The Nordic country has acquired vaccines for 10,000 people — each dose consists of two injections — as part of a joint European Union (EU) procurement of up to 40 million doses for 15 nations from manufacturer CSL Seqirus (CSL.AX), reported Reuters.
“The vaccine will be offered to those aged 18 or over who are at increased risk of contracting avian influenza due to their work or other circumstances,” Finnish Institute for Health and Welfare (THL) said in a statement on Tuesday.
Though the virus has not been detected in humans in Finland yet, the Nordic country is eager to roll out vaccinations because of transmission risks posed by its fur farms.
The H5N1 strain of bird flu has killed or caused the culling of hundreds of millions of poultry globally in recent years. More worryingly, the virus has been spreading to mammals, including cows in the United States and, in some cases, to humans also.
“The conditions in Finland are very different in that we have fur farms where the animals can end up in contact with wildlife,” THL Chief Physician Hanna Nohynek told Reuters.