US discovers second person infected with H5N1 bird flu, suspected to have been infected from cows

The US has just recorded a case of a dairy cow infecting humans with the H5N1 bird flu virus - Photo: CNBC

Reuters reported on May 23 that the United States had just recorded the second case of H5N1 bird flu in humans in the state of Michigan on May 22. Previously, the first case was recorded last April in the state of Texas.

Similar to the first case in Texas, doctors detected the H5N1 flu virus in a sample taken from the eye fluid of a patient in Michigan.

CNBC quoted epidemiologist Nirav Shah as saying that the detection of H5N1 virus in eye fluid is a good sign. “The test results above reduce the possibility of transmission through the respiratory tract. Because they did not detect H5N1 virus in the patient's nasal sample,” Mr. Shah added.

According to the Michigan Department of Health , the patient had mild symptoms and recovered. He had frequent contact with cattle infected with H5N1 influenza. Therefore, the leading hypothesis about the cause of the disease is that it was transmitted from cow to human.

However, the US Centers for Disease Control and Prevention (CDC) said that the risk of infection in the community remains low. US CDC experts also added that they have not found evidence of transmission of the H5N1 flu virus from poultry to humans.

On the contrary, Mr. Scott Hensley, an expert on influenza vaccines at the University of Pennsylvania, said that the fact that the US recorded a second case of H5N1 flu infection in humans is a worrying thing.

“This is concerning because it suggests that the virus is circulating widely in cattle, which could lead to changes in the H5N1 virus itself and increase the likelihood that humans will respond to it,” said Mr Hensley.

Michigan and Texas are two of nine states that have reported avian influenza outbreaks in dairy cattle so far in 2024. Since March, the CDC has tested nearly 40 people working on several dairy farms in Michigan and Texas.

US scientists believe the H5N1 flu outbreak is spreading further after the US Food and Drug Administration (FDA) reported detecting the H5N1 virus in about 20% of milk samples.

The US Department of Health and Human Services (HHS) is currently actively negotiating with vaccine manufacturers Pfizer and Moderna to develop a vaccine to prevent H5N1 influenza in humans.

'Big concern' bird flu spread from birds, cows to humans

In late April, Ms. Truong Van Thanh, head of the World Health Organization's (WHO) global influenza program, warned of the risk of the H5N1 bird flu virus spreading to cows in countries other than the United States through migratory birds.

“Cows in other countries will also face the risk of H5N1 infection because this virus has the potential to spread around the world through migratory birds,” Ms. Truong Van Thanh said at a press conference in Geneva (Switzerland) on April 30.

Ms. Truong also reiterated that the United Nations assessed the risk of community transmission caused by the virus as very low, but also called on everyone to be vigilant.

The WHO has called the risk of H5N1 virus spreading from cows or birds to humans a “major concern,” although the rate of infection in the community is very low because the H5N1 virus is not capable of transmitting from person to person.

Source: https://tuoitre.vn/my-phat-hien-nguoi-thu-hai-mac-cum-gia-cam-h5n1-nghi-lay-tu-bo-20240523122356125.htm