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Organization And Nature Of Business	12 Months Ended
Organization And Nature Of Business	Dec. 31, 2011
Organization And Nature Of Business [Abstract]
Organization And Nature Of Business	1. ORGANIZATION AND NATURE OF BUSINESS AVI BioPharma, Inc. (the "Company") is a biopharmaceutical company incorporated in the State of Oregon on July 22, 1980. The Company is focused on the discovery and development of unique RNA-based therapeutics for the treatment of rare and infectious diseases. Applying the Company's proprietary platform technologies, the Company is able to target a broad range of diseases and disorders through distinct RNA-based mechanisms of action. The Company is focused on rapidly advancing the development of its Duchenne muscular dystrophy drug candidates, including its lead product candidate, eteplirsen, which is currently in a Phase IIb clinical trial. The Company is also focused on developing therapeutics for the treatment of infectious diseases, including its lead infectious disease programs aimed at the development of drug candidates for the Ebola and Marburg hemorrhagic fever viruses for which the Company has historically received and expects to continue to receive significant financial support from U.S. government research contracts.