Web page discusses how to protect workers from avian flu infection.

The National Institute for Occupational Safety and Health (NIOSH) has developed a Web page that discusses how to protect workers from avian influenza, which has infected humans in Asia and Europe and is considered by scientists to be highly pathogenic.

Avian flu is a poultry disease caused by viruses that normally infect birds. Though the viruses typically do not infect humans, they can infect poultry workers or people who come in contact with infected poultry or contaminated surfaces.

Scientists are concerned about avian flu because it may change into a form that is highly infectious in humans and spreads easily from person to person. The NIOSH Web page, www.cdc.gov/niosh/topics/avianflu/, links to resources from the U.S. Occupational Safety and Health Administration, the U.S. Centers for Disease Control and Prevention, and other domestic and international resources such as the U.S. Department of Agriculture, the World Health organization, and the European Centre for Disease Control and Prevention.