Further updates on the Avian (Bird) Flu: vaccine production a fraction of what it needs to be

Those of you who follow my blog know that I have been attempting to track important news related to the potential H5N1 (Bird/Avian Flu) pandemic as closely as possible, reporting relevant updates here.  There has been a lull in the news since a UK report that there was little risk for a human outbreak.  This does not mean, however, that the governments of various countries, including the United States, have failed to begin preparations for a "worst case" scenario.  Even if there were only a (and I'm pulling this number out of the air to illustrate my point) 1% chance of the H5N1 virus mutating into a strain that can be transmitted between humans, it would still be the responsibility of the public health community to be prepared.

Unfortunately, according to a story by the Canadian Press, certain components involved in the production of the H5N1 vaccine are more difficult to obtain than previously thought.  Furthermore, the vaccine has been determined to be effective only in rather high doses.  This poses a problem wherein the low yield and the high need for the vaccine create a scenario where fewer people can be vaccinated in the event of a potential pandemic. 

Despite this shortage, "'With our current global production capacity, in about six months we could vaccinate 75 to 100 million people,'' Dr. David Fedson, a retired vaccine industry executive, said from his home in France" (CP).  This isn't an awful number, but considering the size of the global community, it would only be truly effective in the case of a limited outbreak. 

The moral of the story, as always, is that, even with all of the potential made-made threats that exist in our world today, there are still biological problems that have the potential to be deadly.  Again, don't duct tape your houses closed (etc...), but continue to monitor this situation from time to time.  Precisely the time when we decide that this isn't a threat to our well-being is the time when a potential mutation would be the most dangerous.