Bird flu continues to spread in cows in US, human infected

• Published date: 07 April 2024
• Author: TZVI JOFFRE
• Publication title: Jerusalem Post, The: Web Edition Articles (Israel)

The US Centers for Disease Control and Prevention (CDC) reported on Friday that a person who had exposure to infected cows in Texas was found to be infected with the H5N1 subtype, with conjunctivitis being their only symptom. The infected person was treated with a flu antiviral drug and is recovering at home

It is unclear how the person was infected, but if they were infected by exposure to an infected cow, it would be the first recorded case of transmission from a cow to a human.

The CDC stressed that the overall human health risk of the bird flu remains low. Preliminary analysis of genetic sequences of the virus shows they still are not well adapted to humans. One change was found in the genetic sequence, although the CDC explained that the finding is not uncommon and is not associated with an increased ability to spread between humans.

The CDC recommended that people avoid unprotected exposure to sick or dead animals or to animal poop, bedding, raw milk, or materials touched by sick animals.

During an online meeting held by the USDA, the World Organisation for Animal Health (WOAH), and the United Nations's Food and Agricultural Organization (FAO) on Thursday, scientists from the USDA noted that the virus may not be spreading directly between cows and may instead be spreading on milking equipment, the people taking care of the milking, or both, according to Science magazine.

The virus may be transmitted in milk droplets on workers' clothing or gloves or on the suction cups used for milking, according to the scientists.

Meanwhile, Richard Webby, a virologist at St Jude Children's Research Hospital, told NPR on Thursday that "it's hard to explain exactly what's going on without some degree of mammal-to-mammal spread."

"This particular version of the H5N1 virus is teaching us that some of the things we thought we knew about flu were wrong," said Webby.

Infected cows found in six states

So far, infected cows have been found in six states, including Texas, Idaho, Kansas, Ohio, New Mexico, and Michigan.

The Texas Department of State Health Services told the Center for Infectious Disease Research and Policy at the University of Minnesota last week...