Hong Kong Bird Flu Under Control So Far

A bird flu that has killed six people in Hong Kong has not mutated into a more dangerous bug that could spread easily from person to person and cause a worldwide epidemic, new laboratory tests indicate.

But federal experts say there remains a need for caution, and scientists at the Centers for Disease Control and Prevention are working on a vaccine.

“It is good news for now,” Dr. Kanta Subbarao of the CDC flu laboratory in Atlanta said. She said experts worry, however, that the Hong Kong bird flu still could make genetic changes that would turn it into a more virulent human killer.

“We remain concerned that a (genetic change) could occur at any time,” said Subbarao, lead author of a flu study being published today in the journal Science.

A 25-year-old woman died Thursday, the sixth person in Hong Kong killed by bird flu since the outbreak began in May. At least 12 other people have been infected.