Human case of avian influenza in Texas, where the virus was confirmed in a dairy worker who had contact with infected cattle. The patient, who had eye inflammation as his only symptom, is in isolation and under antiviral treatment. He was infected by a highly virulent H5N1 strain that recently raged among dairy cows in 5 US states. “At the moment we are not aware of any close contacts” of the new case “who have shown symptoms”, specified Kevin Griffis, spokesperson for the Centers for Disease Control and Prevention (CDC).
For the United States, this is the second case of avian influenza in humans, after the infection reported in 2022 in Colorado, in a poultry slaughter worker. The new case – the health authorities assured – does not change the level of risk for the general population, which remains low. However, it is higher in people exposed for professional reasons to potentially infected birds or other animals.
It is the first time that highly pathogenic avian influenza has been identified in dairy cattle in the US, the American Veterinary Medical Association said. An element which, together with the transmission that runs from cow to cow, represents a worrying change for experts.
Bassetti: “For now the virus is not transmitted from man to man”
“In the USA a person tested positive for the H5N1 strain of highly pathogenic avian influenza. He was infected through dairy cattle. The avian virus has now re-assorted with a very high viral pressure. In fact it is causing infections not only in birds, but in many mammals, including the Texas cow“, underlines the infectious disease specialist Matteo Bassetti, head of the San Martino Polyclinic in Genoa, on
The H5N1 virus “to date has not been transmitted from man to man – Bassetti specifies – but who knows what will happen in the future. One more reason to always keep pandemic plans updated”, recommends the expert.
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