CDC issues bird flu infection health alert
Source: The Hill
04/06/24 5:30 PM ET
The Centers for Disease Control and Prevention (CDC) issued a health alert Friday to inform healthcare centers and the public of a confirmed human infection of the bird flu.
A farm worker on a commercial dairy farm in Texas developed conjunctivitis, commonly known as pink eye, on March 27 and then tested positive for the “highly pathogenic avian influenza” (HPAI), the CDC said. HPAI viruses have been reported in the Texas area’s dairy cattle and wild birds, but before this incident, there have been no previous reports on the spreading of HPAI from cows to humans.
The patient did not report any other symptoms and was not hospitalized. The person has received antiviral treatment and is recovering and the patient’s household members have not become sick, the CDC said. “No additional cases of human infection with the HPAI A(H5N1) virus associated with the current infections in dairy cattle and birds in the United States, and no human-to-human transmission of HPAI A(H5N1) virus have been identified,” the CDC said.
The CDC said it tested the patient’s virus genome and sequences from cattle, wild birds and poultry. It found minor changes, they both “lack changes that would make them better adapted to infect mammals.” USDA has confirmed infections of dairy cattle herds in five states — Texas, Kansas, Michigan, New Mexico — with results in Idaho “presumed” to be positive. The CDC said the spread has likely been due to the movement of cattle across state lines.
Read more: https://thehill.com/policy/healthcare/4578651-cdc-issues-bird-flu-infection-health-alert/
Link to CDC ALERT - Highly Pathogenic Avian Influenza A(H5N1) Virus: Identification of Human Infection and Recommendations for Investigations and Response
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