What happens if there is an outbreak of avian flu or another kind of flu epidemic?
If there is an outbreak of influenza, the newer antivirals (Tamiflu and Relenza) are likely to be used both as prevention and treatment, although we cannot be certain how much they might be able to help. Wearing face masks might be able to reduce the risk of these kinds of infections spreading if you are close to someone who is very contagious with a dangerous form of influenza like avian influenza. The most important and effective thing to do if there is an outbreak of influenza of any type is to lower your chance of either getting, or spreading, the virus by using the basic anti-infection strategies listed above. The main thing is: wash your hands often. In studies done during the SARS epidemic in 2002 and 2003, when people washed their hands more than 10 times a day, it appears to have made a big difference in how much the disease spread.
