The US Centers for Disease Control and Prevention (CDC) announced this news over the weekend after confirming positive test results. A person whose only symptom is eye inflammation takes antiviral drugs and recovers. He had come across cows believed to be infected with the virus, which is decimating global bird populations.
As previously written Lrytas.lt, last week cows in five US states – Texas, Kansas, Michigan, New Mexico and Idaho – tested positive for the H5N1 virus. It’s unclear how they got sick, but it now appears the virus may be spreading among livestock, according to the US Department of Agriculture.
Previously, it was confirmed that mammals only contracted the virus from sick birds. “There have been several outbreaks that have not involved humans, and it is likely that the virus could have been transmitted from mammal to mammal,” says Richard Webby of St. Jude Children’s Hospital of Tennessee. For example, at the end of last year in Argentina, 17,000 baby elephant seals died from bird flu. In addition, in 2022 In Spain, there was an outbreak among farmed fabrics. However, he said, it is difficult to rule out the possibility that there could not have been other sources of the virus in these cases, such as contaminated food.
Despite recent human infections, the CDC says the risk of contracting bird flu remains low for most people. Humans in close contact with infected birds or other animals, including livestock, are at greatest risk.
Although pasteurized milk remains safe, people should avoid consuming or handling raw milk products, according to New Scientist.
