WHO Raises Pandemic Alert Level To Phase 5

世界卫生组织(World Health Organization)将全球警告级别提高到了5级，这表明随着猪流感病毒继续扩散并导致新的疫情爆发，猪流感大流行已迫在眉睫。Associated PressWHO总干事陈冯富珍说所有国家都应该立即启动应对流感大流行的预案。这个联合国下属的公共卫生机构周一将警告级别从3级提高到了4级，这相当于确认了A/H1N1病毒正在人际之间传播。WHO在网站上称，此次上调到5级显示，A/H1N1病毒至少已在同一地区至少两个国家发生人际间传播，并造成持续性疫情；目前完成计划中防控措施的组织沟通和实施时间非常紧迫。WHO总干事陈冯富珍(Margaret Chan)在与记者的电话会议上说，WHO是基于墨西哥和美国正在出现猪流感病毒持续性人际传染的事实而决定再次提高警告级别的。美国目前已经有91例确诊病例，1人死亡。她说，所有国家都应该立即启动应对流感大流行的预案。陈冯富珍说，还不清楚疫情将是轻微还是严重，因为A/H1N1病毒的致死率尚未明确计算出来。她说，目前最大的问题是：这次疫情将有多严重？这一病毒迄今为止带来的一个谜团是，为什么墨西哥猪流感患者的病情要比美国患者严重。墨西哥已经有159名怀疑感染猪流感的患者死亡。WHO的警告级别共有6级。6级表明疫情已经在全球爆发。（更新完成）Betsy McKay / Gautam Naik相关阅读美国疾控中心证实美国猪流感病例增至64例，分布在5个州 2009-04-29猪流感确诊病例上升 扩散风险加大 2009-04-29怎样预防猪流感 2009-04-29原声视频：全球猪流感疫情的最新情况(中文字幕) 2009-04-29亚洲吸取以往教训 积极迎战猪流感 2009-04-28


The World Health Organization raised its global alert level to phase 5, signaling that a swine-flu pandemic is 'imminent' as the virus continues to spread and cause new outbreaks.The United Nations public-health agency had already raised its alert level Monday to phase 4 from phase 3 in recognition that the A/H1N1 virus was spreading from person to person. The move to phase 5 indicates that the virus is causing multiple outbreaks in at least two countries in one WHO region and that 'the time to finalize the organization, communication, and implementation of the planned mitigation measures is short,' according to the agency's Web site.In a conference call with reporters, WHO Director-General Margaret Chan said the decision to raise the alert level again had been made after the agency established that sustained person-to-person transmission is occurring both in Mexico and the U.S., where 91 cases have now been confirmed, with one death.'All countries should immediately activate their pandemic preparation plans,' she said.Chan said it remained unclear whether any pandemic would be mild or severe because the virus strain's mortality rate hasn't yet been clearly established. 'The biggest question right now is this: How severe will the pandemic be?' she said.One of the mysteries surrounding the virus so far is why it seems to have caused more serious cases of illness in Mexico, where 159 people are suspected to have died from it, than in the U.S. The WHO's alert system ranges from phase 1 to phase 6. Phase 6 indicates a global pandemic is under way.Betsy McKay / Gautam Naik