united states have seen dozens now human bird flu cases this yearAll of them mild – so far.
Centers for Disease Control and Prevention confirmed on wednesday A patient in Louisiana has been hospitalized with a severe case of avian influenza caused by the H5N1 virus. This is the first case of serious illness related to the virus in America.
The virus has decimated poultry flocks and wild birds across the country and infected more than 800 dairy herds in 16 states. Infected animals are spreading the virus to people who come in contact with them. Since April, the US has seen a total 61 human cases of bird flu reported in eight statesOf them, 37 were in contact with sick or infected dairy cows, while 21 were in contact with poultry farms and slaughter operations. In those cases, people developed conjunctivitis and mild respiratory symptoms and recovered completely.
A serious case is significant because bird flu has previously been associated with serious illness in other countries, including outbreaks that resulted in death in up to 50 percent of cases. From 2003 to 2023, out of 878 people who were found infected with this virus, There were 458 deaths.
An investigation by the Louisiana Department of Health and CDC revealed that the hospitalized patient, a resident of southwestern Louisiana, was exposed to sick and dead birds in backyard flocks. This is the first case of H5N1 bird flu in the US linked to exposure to a backyard flock. instead of a commercial farm,
Demetre Daskalakis, director of CDC's National Vaccination Center, said, “Although the source of this infection in Louisiana is under investigation, it is believed that the patient who was reported in Louisiana came from sick or dead birds on his property.” Was in touch.” and respiratory diseases, during a press conference on Wednesday. No other details were available on the source of the exposure or the patient's condition.
A person with bird flu in Missouri was hospitalized in late August, but CDC officials say it was due to underlying medical conditions. The patient did not have respiratory symptoms and was not seriously ill from his infection. “In the Missouri case, we don't really have the kind of data that supports that this was related to their influenza infection,” Daskalakis said.
There are genetic similarities between the virus from the Louisiana patient and the virus from a Canadian teenager who was hospitalized with H5N1. Scientists have classified the virus in Louisiana as type D1.1, the same type found in the Canadian patient and a second case from Washington state. This variant has also been found in wild birds and chickens in America.
It is different from the B3.13 variant, which has been found in dairy cows, some poultry outbreaks and sporadic human cases in several states. CDC scientists are conducting additional genomic sequencing of viral samples from the Louisiana patient. Genomic sequencing can identify potential changes in the virus that would indicate an increased ability to infect humans or be transmitted from person to person.
So far, H5N1 bird flu has not been known to spread from person to person. The CDC says the immediate risk to public health is low, but people who come in contact with infected animals for work or recreation are at higher risk of contracting the virus. “This means backyard flock owners, hunters and other bird lovers should also take precautions,” the agency said in a statement.