Texan Has Contracted H5N1 Bird Flu; CDC Calls Threat to Public ‘Low’

TUESDAY, April 2, 2024

An unnamed person in Texas had been recognized with the H5N1 avian flu after shut contact with contaminated dairy cattle, the U.S. Centers for Disease Control and Prevention reported Monday.

It’s solely the second case ever confirmed within the United States (the primary was in Colorado in 2022), and preliminary evaluation of the pressure within the new case suggests no new mutations of concern.

“This an infection doesn’t change the H5N1 hen flu human well being threat evaluation for the U.S. normal public, which CDC considers to be low,” the company stated in a press release.

According to the CDC, the person was recognized with an infection after extended contact with dairy cattle “presumed to be contaminated with HPAI A[H5N1] viruses.”

The affected person’s sickness to date has been gentle: The solely symptom is conjunctivitis (redness) of the attention.

“The affected person was informed to isolate and is being handled with an antiviral drug for flu,” the CDC stated.

Human instances of H5N1 are uncommon however do happen sporadically worldwide, the CDC famous.

And it is maybe unsurprising that such a case occurred in Texas, since H5N1 avian flu has surged amongst livestock there this 12 months.

In dairy cows, it “was first reported in Texas and Kansas by the U.S. Department of Agriculture [USDA] on March 25, 2024,” the CDC stated. “Unpasteurized milk from sick cattle collected from two dairy farms in Kansas and one in Texas, in addition to a throat swab from a cow in one other dairy in Texas, examined constructive” for the virus.

On March 29, an infection was additionally discovered amongst a herd of dairy cows in Michigan that had obtained cows from Texas, the company famous.

Importantly, the Texas Department of State Health Services famous in an alert that cattle infections “don’t current a priority for the industrial milk provide. Dairies are required to destroy or divert milk from any sick cows, plus pasteurization kills avian flu viruses.”

Still, the CDC has been monitoring the unfold of avian flu since outbreaks had been first reported amongst wild and domesticated birds within the United States again in 2021.

While the emergence of a pressure of hen flu that has the power to transmit simply between people is of paramount concern, instances in people to date have usually arisen solely in individuals who’ve had shut exposures to contaminated animals.

Circulating strains of H5N1 additionally look like simply treatable utilizing customary antivirals.

“Preliminary evaluation of A[H5N1] viruses has not discovered adjustments that might make these viruses proof against present FDA-approved flu antiviral drugs, so these are believed to be efficient towards these viruses,” the CDC stated.

As for the human case in Texas, “CDC is working with state well being departments to proceed to watch staff who could have been involved with contaminated or doubtlessly contaminated birds/animals and check these individuals who develop signs,” the company stated.

Should the virus ever mutate to unfold simply amongst people, the CDC says vaccines have been developed that ought to “present affordable safety towards H5N1 influenza viruses.” The present seasonal flu vaccine wouldn’t assist stop an infection with avian flu.

While the present risk to the general public is low, the CDC stated it continues to watch H5N1 viruses nationally.

“This is a growing scenario, and CDC will share further updates as new related data turns into available,” the company stated.

In the meantime, the CDC says the chances of contracting avian flu could be diminished by decreasing contact with stay or useless animals, resembling “wild birds, poultry, different domesticated birds, and different wild or domesticated animals [including cattle].”

Another huge tip to avoiding H5N1: Stay away from unpasteurized milk merchandise. That contains “uncooked” milk, cheeses and different such meals, the CDC stated.

“FDA’s longstanding position is that unpasteurized, uncooked milk can harbor harmful microorganisms that may pose critical well being dangers to customers, and FDA is reminding customers of the dangers related to uncooked milk consumption in mild of the HPAI detections,” the company stated.

SOURCE: U.S. Centers for Disease Control and Prevention, assertion, April 1, 2024; Texas Department of State Health Services, information launch, April 1, 2024

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