Avian influenza taken in bird's-eye view

摘要

vIn recent years, there has been an increase in the number of outbreaks of avian influenza in indus-trial poultry flocks and backyard poultry in Europe. Also, the period of seasonal outbreaks seems to expand. In recent years, the virus has been circulating in the wild-bird population in Belgium, during summer time. Veterinarians are therefore urged to be watchful for this notifiable disease. In this review, an overview is given of the current epidemiological situation, the possible disease features, actions to be taken in case of suspicion of an outbreak and governmental control measures.