A person in Missouri with no known animal exposure was hospitalized with avian influenza, otherwise known as bird flu, and has since recovered, the U.S. Centers for Disease Control and Prevention said Sept.
6. The Missouri Department of Health and Senior Services reported that the person had underlying medical conditions and was treated at the hospital with influenza antiviral medications, according to a . The person has recovered.
The infection is the 14th human case of reported in the United States this year and the first case where the person had no known contact with infected poultry or dairy cows, the CDC said. H5 bird flu has not been reported among cattle in Missouri, the CDC said Sept. 6.
However, H5 bird flu outbreaks have been reported in commercial poultry and backyard flocks. is a disease caused by infection with avian influenza A viruses, which occur naturally among wild aquatic birds and circulate among poultry, TODAY.com previously reported.
Occasionally, bird flu viruses spread to mammals and, rarely, to humans. Based on available information, the CDC still assesses the current risk to the general public posed by bird flu to be “low.” However, the recent human cases has sounded the alarm among officials in the U.
S. and abroad, who are monitoring bird flu viruses closely. Since the start of 2024, 14 people have been infected with bird flu, the CDC said Sept.
6. In most human cases, people experienced “mild flu-like symptoms,” such as fever or runny nose.