The World Health Organisation has warned world leaders, particularly stakeholders in the health sector that emerging influenza viruses are capable of causing another pandemic.
In a statement on Thursday to commemorate the Global Influenza Surveillance and Response System’s 70 years anniversary, the WHO Director-General, Dr Tedros Adhanom Ghebreyesus, said cases of seasonal influenza were responsible for up to 650,000 influenza-related respiratory deaths globally.
According to the WHO DG, “Influenza is a serious global health problem that impacts all countries: every year, there are an estimated one billion cases of seasonal influenza causing three to five million severe cases including up to 650 000 influenza-related respiratory deaths globally.
“Moreover, new influenza viruses are constantly emerging – these can cause pandemics that lead to widespread societal disruption and millions of deaths.
“Influenza viruses constantly evolve into new variants and spread rapidly, similar to SARS-CoV-2, the virus that causes COVID-19.”
On GISRS operations, the global health body boss said that the surveillance and response system had a network of over 150 laboratories in 127 countries, areas or territories that continuously monitor influenza viruses and diseases globally.
According to him, millions of specimens are tested and hundreds of thousands of viruses are exchanged within GISRS every year.
“Founded in 1952, the Global Influenza Surveillance and Response System, or GISRS, is celebrating 70 years of success as a worldwide network founded to protect people from the threat of influenza, reviewing its added value to other respiratory virus threats including COVID-19, and setting its sights to the future.
“GISRS is a proved global network that has provided a first line of defence against influenza for 70 years,” Ghebreyesus added.
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