The World Health Organization (WHO) has warned about the increased risk of bird flu transmitting to humans as the virus expands its reach into new species.
Since 2020, an outbreak of the H5N1 strain has resulted in the deaths of millions of birds worldwide. Alarmingly, the virus has also claimed the lives of numerous mammals, such as sea lions, elephant seals and a polar bear.
In addition to the growing concern, the virus has surfaced in 16 herds of cattle in Texas and left experts baffled, as it was previously believed that these animals were not susceptible to infection. This development raises apprehension about the potential for H5N1 to leap into the human population.
Dr. Jeremy Farrar, the WHO chief scientist, expressed deep concern at a press conference in Geneva, stating, “This remains, I think, an enormous concern. When you enter the mammalian population, you’re getting closer to humans; this virus is just looking for new, novel hosts.”
Farrar further warned that as the virus circulates among new mammalian hosts, its chances of further evolution and acquiring the ability to infect humans and, crucially, to spread from human to human increase. In the recent cattle outbreak in Texas, one person was diagnosed with bird flu after close contact with presumed infected dairy cows. Over the past two decades, hundreds of individuals have contracted the virus after exposure to infected animals. However, there is currently no evidence of human-to-human transmission in these cases.
Nevertheless, Farrar emphasized that the fatality rate for humans infected with H5N1 is exceptionally high. According to the WHO, from 2003 to 2024, there were 889 reported cases and 463 deaths across 23 countries, resulting in a case fatality rate of 52%.
The Texas infection represents the second case of bird flu in the United States and appears to be the first instance of H5N1 transmission through contact with an infected mammal, as stated by the WHO.
Farrar described the ongoing bird flu outbreak as a “global zoonotic animal pandemic” and called for heightened surveillance. He stressed the importance of understanding the extent of human infections and stated, “It’s a tragic thing to say, but if I get infected with H5N1 and I die, that’s the end of it. If I go around the community and spread it to somebody else, then you start the cycle.”
Farrar underscored the urgent need to develop vaccines and therapeutics for this strain. He also emphasized the importance of international health authorities having the capacity to diagnose the virus promptly and enable a swift response if the strain were to transition to human-to-human transmission.
An uncommon pathogen is raising alarm in one Southwest state.
What’s happening?
Valley fever, more common in California and Arizona, is increasing in prevalence and causing more severe disease in Utah, KSL NewsRadio reported.
An uptick in construction and delayed diagnoses are contributing to cases that result in death more often than in other states, where the symptoms of fatigue, fever, and rash are readily linked to the fungal spores that thrive in hot, dry climates.
These dogs were found to be infected with carbapenemase-producing carbapenem-resistant Pseudomonas aeruginosa, the same bacteria implicated in an outbreak associated with 27 different eye drop brands.
SPRINGFIELD, Illinois — Since the H5N1 Bird Flu virus has been found in 8 U.S. states, the U.S. Department of Agriculture is making tests for dairy herds a must.
The USDA says that the testing is required for dairy cattle moving between states and that good results must be reported. The testing starts on Monday, April 29th.
WHO Member States agreed to resume negotiations aimed at finalizing a pandemic agreement during 29 April to 10 May. The decision came at today’s end of two weeks of intensive country-led discussions on critical subjects aimed at making all countries of the world better prepared for, and able to effectively and equitably respond to, future pandemics.
The Depopulation Agenda Plan is commencing..
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