Bangladeshi backyard poultry raisers’ perceptions and practices related to zoonotic transmission of avian influenza

INTRODUCTION: Highly pathogenic avian influenza (H5N1) virus (known as "bird flu") is an important public health concern due to its potential to infect humans and cause a human pandemic. Bangladesh is a high-risk country for an influenza pandemic because of its dense human population, widespread backyard poultry raising, and endemic H5N1 infection in poultry. Understanding poultry raisers' perceived risks and identifying their risk exposures can help to develop interventions to reduce the risk of avian influenza transmission. This paper explores the perception of Bangladeshi backyard poultry raisers regarding poultry sickness and zoonotic disease transmission and relevant practices. METHODOLOGY: We conducted a qualitative study using social mapping (n=2), in-depth interviews (n=40), household mapping (n=40) and observation (n=16), in two backyard poultry-raising…