Two dairy workers from California have been infected with bird flu, making them the 15th and 16th human cases of the H5N1 virus detected this year in an ongoing outbreak, health officials said. Bird flu cases have affected US dairy cows since March of this year. The latest cases were found in workers who came in contact with infected cattle in the state's Central Valley, where more than 50 herds have been affected since August.
According to officials, the two unidentified workers developed redness in their eyes – also known as conjunctivitis and had other mild symptoms, which included fever, fatigue, muscle aches, cough, sore throat, and diarrhoea. Also known as avian influenza, bird flu is a viral infection that usually spreads in birds but can sometimes spread to humans. H5N1 is the most common cause in humans and can lead to severe respiratory symptoms.
Infected workers were employed on farms According to the health officials, the infected workers were employed at different farms so there is no known link between the two cases. And so, experts say that both were infected through animal contact and not by people. The US Centers for Disease Control and Prevention confirmed the positive test results, the first for California.
CDC officials said new cases of bird flu in people exposed to infected animals are “not unexpected”. However, the risk to the public remains low, they added. Bird flu has infected more than 250 dairy herds across 14 states Statistics say across the.
