Despite having no known interaction with poultry or dairy cows, a Missouri patient tested positive for the bird flu virus, and the Centers for Disease Control and Prevention stated on Thursday that they had not yet been able to determine “a clear source” of infection.
The patient was admitted to the hospital on August 22 and has since made a full recovery, according to the CDC, which made the case public last Friday.
According to the CDC, since March, there have been 13 bird flu infections among poultry and dairy workers amidst an H5N1 outbreak that is fast spreading in 200 dairy herds across 14 states.
Authorities assume that the patient’s underlying medical issues were the reason for the patient’s hospitalization rather than the infection. Because revealing those problems would require revealing personal health information, officials declined to comment.
The patient had weakness, nausea, vomiting, diarrhea, and chest discomfort; nevertheless, a flu test was later conducted. Dr. Nirav Shah, the principal deputy director of the CDC, stated on a call on Thursday that the patient’s symptoms were first unrelated to the flu. An antiviral was used to treat the patient, who didn’t need intensive care because she wasn’t really sick.
State health officials in Missouri are still looking into the incident. Public health officials are now conducting more in-depth interviews with the patient, inquiring about wild birds or other animals observed surrounding the patient’s residence as well as the use of bird feeders, even though the patient was previously claimed to have no interaction with animals. Additionally, they want to know what kind of meat and dairy the patient ate, where it came from, and whether it was raw or not.
There is no evidence of the virus moving from person to person, according to Shah, and none of the patient’s close contacts have shown any symptoms of illness. Officials have not yet discovered any further cases. Additionally, there has been no sign of a rise in flu cases in the patient’s neighborhood.
Shah declared, “Our investigation is not over.” “The probability that this is something that is occurring deep underwater decreases with every day that goes by because we have exceeded the usual 10-day window for transmission.”
According to officials, there is still little risk to the general public.
The director of the CDC’s National Center for Immunization and Respiratory Diseases, Dr. Demetre Daskalakis, stated on the call, “Every case and every type of change prompts us to regularly evaluate risk, which we still view as low.”
According to Shah, the instance might be a “one-off,” indicating that no one else was affected.
He stated that “those do happen with novel influenzas” and mentioned the few swine flu infections that haven’t spread to more than one person this year.
According to a notice issued by state health officials on Friday, there have been no reports of avian flu infections in dairy cattle in Missouri. They added that some cases have been documented in backyard flocks, wild birds, and commercial livestock. There are no known cases involving humans.
Authorities are also keeping an eye out for any alterations in the H5N1 virus that would point to a higher risk of human-to-human transmission. So far, none have been discovered.
Shah mentioned that Missouri’s influenza surveillance program was essential in the detection of the outbreak.