The infected person was exposed to sick and dead birds that he raised in his home.. America announces the first severe human infection with bird flu

Mark
Written By Mark

The Centers for Disease Control and Prevention in the United States announced on Wednesday that a patient was transferred to the hospital after being severely infected with bird flu in Louisiana, in the first serious human case of the disease in the United States.

The infection brings the total number of bird flu infections in the United States to 61 during the current outbreak this year.

According to the Centers for Disease Control and Prevention, the latest infected person was exposed to sick and dead birds that he raised in his yard. But no other details regarding his condition were revealed.

The case was confirmed last Friday, according to the centers. Genetic sequencing revealed that the H5N1 virus that the patient was infected with is of the D1.1 genotype.

This genetic makeup has been observed in wild birds and poultry in the United States and in human infections reported in Washington state and the Canadian province of British Columbia.

The D1.1 genotype differs from B3.13, which has been identified in cattle, some poultry outbreaks, and mild human infections.

The animal source of infection has not been identified for a small number of cases in the United States, but health authorities report that there is insufficient evidence of transmission between humans.

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“This case confirms that, in addition to commercial operations associated with poultry and dairy products, wild birds and non-commercial breeding of birds can be a source of exposure,” the Centers for Disease Control and Prevention said.

Despite these developments, the centers confirmed that they consider the risk to the public to remain minimal.