A second particular person within the US has been contaminated with fowl flu linked to dairy cows, the Michigan Division of Well being and Human Companies reported Wednesday.
The person, a farmworker who had common publicity to contaminated livestock, had delicate signs and has recovered, the division mentioned.
“The present well being threat to most people stays low,” Dr. Natasha Bagdasarian, Michigan’s chief medical government, mentioned in a press launch. “Now we have not seen indicators of sustained human-to-human transmission at this level. That is precisely how public well being is supposed to work, in early detection and monitoring of recent and rising sicknesses.”
The person was being monitored for signs following publicity to contaminated dairy cows, the Facilities for Illness Management and Prevention mentioned in an announcement. The particular person developed conjunctivitis, or pink eye, and a pattern taken from the attention examined constructive for the virus.
That is the second occasion of an individual growing pink eye from a fowl flu an infection. That was additionally the one symptom seen within the Texas dairy employee who was recognized in March within the first documented case of the virus spreading from dairy cows to a human.
The CDC mentioned that it is sequencing samples taken from the Michigan employee to find out if the virus has mutated in ways in which may permit it to unfold extra simply between folks.
The Michigan Division of Agriculture and Rural Growth confirmed further circumstances in cows this week, bringing the whole variety of herds contaminated within the state to 19 as of Wednesday.
Nationally, no less than 51 herds in 9 states have been affected, based on the US Division of Agriculture. Along with herds in Michigan, dairy cattle in Colorado, Kansas, Idaho, New Mexico, North Carolina, Ohio, South Dakota and Texas have additionally examined constructive for fowl flu.
Federal well being authorities are anticipated to carry a media briefing on the matter later Wednesday afternoon.
On Tuesday, the CDC’s principal deputy director, Dr. Nirav Shah, requested state and native well being authorities in a name to proceed monitoring for flu “at enhanced ranges” all through the summer time, though the standard flu season is over and testing for the virus falls to a minimal right now of yr.
The fowl flu, often known as H5N1, is a sort of influenza A virus.
Shah mentioned that the CDC really helpful that states “enhance the variety of constructive influenza A virus samples submitted for subtyping to assist detect even uncommon circumstances of human H5N1 virus an infection in the neighborhood,” the company mentioned in a information launch Tuesday.
For the reason that H5N1 virus was first recognized in 1997, there have been simply over 900 circumstances documented globally in people. Greater than 50% of these sufferers died, based on the CDC. However that fatality charge could also be an overestimate as a result of circumstances can also be delicate and presumably go undetected.
That is the third case of H5N1 total in the USA. In 2022, an inmate in Colorado was recognized with the virus. The person was engaged on a industrial farm culling birds suspected to be contaminated. His solely symptom was fatigue, and he recovered with a course of Tamiflu.
There is no such thing as a proof at this level that H5N1 is spreading from individual to individual. Not one of the folks residing with the Texas dairy employee grew to become sick.
The CDC recommends that anybody in touch with dairy cattle put on protecting gear, together with security glasses, waterproof aprons and boots that may be sanitized.
