dairy cow
Shutterstock / Zhang Yuangeng
A person living in the United States contracted avian influenza from an infected dairy cow in Texas. This is the first case in which a subtype of the virus called H5N1 has been confirmed to be transmitted between humans and other mammals.
The Centers for Disease Control and Prevention (CDC) announced the news today after confirming a positive test result over the weekend. The patient’s only symptom was eye inflammation, and he is taking antiviral medication and is recovering. They had come into contact with cattle believed to have been infected with a virus that has decimated the world’s bird populations.
Last week, cattle in five US states (Texas, Kansas, Michigan, New Mexico, and Idaho) tested positive for H5N1. It’s unclear how they got sick, but it now appears the virus may be spreading among the animals. According to the US Department of Agriculture.
Until now, it had only been confirmed that mammals could be infected with the virus from sick birds. “There have been several non-human outbreaks where there may have been mammal-to-mammal transmission,” says Richard Webby at St. Jude Children’s Hospital in Tennessee. For example, 17,000 elephant seal pups died in Argentina late last year due to avian influenza. In 2022, there was an outbreak among farmed mink in Spain. But in these situations, it is difficult to rule out other sources of the virus, such as contaminated food, he said.
Despite recent human infections, the CDC says the risk of contracting bird flu remains low for most people. People who have had close contact with other animals, including infected birds and livestock, are at greatest risk. Although pasteurized milk is safe, you should avoid consuming or handling raw dairy products.
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Source: www.newscientist.com
