America’s first serious case of bird flu confirmed in Louisiana

CNN
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A patient in Louisiana has been hospitalized with a severe case of H5N1 bird flu, the US Centers for Disease Control and Prevention said, the first case of this type in the United States.

The agency said Wednesday that the person was exposed to sick and dead birds in backyard flocks; this is the first US bird flu case linked to a backyard flock.

“It is believed that the patient reported by Louisiana had been exposed to sick or dead birds on their property. These are not commercial poultry and there was no exposure to dairy cows or their related products,” said Dr. Demetre Daskalakis, director of the National Center for Immunization and Respiratory Diseases at the CDC.

Federal officials declined to answer questions about the patient’s symptoms or their current condition. They instead referred all inquiries about the case to the Louisiana Department of Health, which is leading the investigation.

According to state officials, the patient is suffering from severe respiratory illness related to H5N1 and is hospitalized in critical condition. The person is older than 65 and has underlying medical conditions that increased their risk of flu complications, the Louisiana Department of Health said in an email to CNN.

This virus, D1.1, is the same type found in recent human cases in Canada and Washington state and found in wild birds and poultry in the United States. It is different from B3.13, the type detected in dairy cows, some poultry outbreaks and other human cases throughout the United States.

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The CDC said it is working on further genomic sequencing of samples from the patient, who are from southwestern Louisianaand the patient exposure investigation is still ongoing.

Bird flu has been linked to serious human illness and death in other countries. No person-to-person spread has been found.

“This case does not change CDC’s overall assessment of the immediate risk to public health from H5N1 avian influenza, which remains low,” the agency said in a statement.

There have been 61 reported human cases of H5 bird flu in the United States since April, mostly among dairy and poultry workers.

The Louisiana case shows that precautions should be taken by people with chicken flocks, hunters and other bird enthusiasts, the CDC said.

“The cases across the United States are a constellation of spillovers,” said Dr. Rebecca Christofferson, a virologist at Louisiana State University’s School of Veterinary Medicine. Experts still don’t understand exactly how these spillovers happen and the specific factors that increase a person’s risk.

“It’s just kind of a black box at the moment that a lot of people are trying to answer these questions,” Christofferson said.

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The CDC says the best approach is to avoid exposure. Infected birds can shed virus in their saliva, mucus and feces, and other animals can shed it in their respiratory secretions and body fluids, including unpasteurized milk from cows.

“People who work with or have recreational exposure to infected animals are at greater risk of infection and it is extremely important that they Follow CDC recommended precautions when around infected or potentially infected animals, a message that we will continue to increase given the recent cases,” said Daskalakis.