# HIV may help spread Bird Flu

**URL:** <https://boards.straightdope.com/t/hiv-may-help-spread-bird-flu/331634>\
**Category:** Miscellaneous and Personal Stuff I Must Share\
**Created:** [November 18, 2005, 2:22pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/hiv-may-help-spread-bird-flu/331634 "2005-11-18T14:22:18Z")\
**Posts on this page:** 3\
**Page:** 1

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**Author:** ![Bosda\_Di\_Chi\_of\_Tricor](https://sea3.discourse-cdn.com/straightdope/user_avatar/boards.straightdope.com/bosda_di_chi_of_tricor/32/16845_2.png) [@Bosda\_Di\_Chi\_of\_Tricor](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/Bosda_Di_Chi_of_Tricor)\
**Post date:** [November 18, 2005, 2:22pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/hiv-may-help-spread-bird-flu/331634/1 "2005-11-18T14:22:18Z")

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[http://news.bbc.co.uk/2/hi/health/4444940.stm](http://news.bbc.co.uk/2/hi/health/4444940.stm)

The reduced immune systems of people infected with HIV may enable H5 Avian Influenzas to adapt to Human hosts. leading to Human-to-Human infection.

This opens up nightmare scenarios involving Central Africa, where _huge_ numbers of people test positive for HIV.

And the Avian Flu is going to hit Africa very, very soon.

I suspect that we have run out of time.

First Human-to-Human transmission before next flu season, I suspect. ☹

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**Author:** ![Smeghead](https://avatars.discourse-cdn.com/v4/letter/s/f1d935/32.png) [@Smeghead](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/Smeghead)\
**Post date:** [November 18, 2005, 6:27pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/hiv-may-help-spread-bird-flu/331634/2 "2005-11-18T18:27:35Z")

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This isn’t new. AIDS patients have been acting as Petri dishes for diseases to mix and recombine for quite a while now.

And yet, somehow, the sky hasn’t fallen in yet.

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**Author:** ![Bosda\_Di\_Chi\_of\_Tricor](https://sea3.discourse-cdn.com/straightdope/user_avatar/boards.straightdope.com/bosda_di_chi_of_tricor/32/16845_2.png) [@Bosda\_Di\_Chi\_of\_Tricor](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/Bosda_Di_Chi_of_Tricor)\
**Post date:** [November 18, 2005, 6:34pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/hiv-may-help-spread-bird-flu/331634/3 "2005-11-18T18:34:52Z")

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> [@Smeghead](#):
>
> This isn’t new. AIDS patients have been acting as Petri dishes for diseases to mix and recombine for quite a while now.
> 
> And yet, somehow, the sky hasn’t fallen in yet.

Consider the sheer numbers of people.

And the high death rate the Avian Flu shows at this time.