The second case of a person contracting bird flu or H5N1 virus despite not being exposed to poultry or dairy cows has been reported, US health officials said. According to reports, this person had shared a home with a patient who was first hospitalized with bird flu in August. Antibody tests have, however, shown that symptomatic healthcare workers who cared for the patient were not infected with the H5N1 virus, the Centers for Disease Control and Prevention said in its latest bird flu update.
According to the investigation, the original hospital patient along with the second individual had identical symptom onset as similar dates support a single common exposure to bird flu rather than person-to-person spread within the household, the CDC noted. "To date, human-to-human spread of H5 bird flu has not been identified in the United States," the agency added. "CDC believes the immediate risk to the general public from H5N1 bird flu remains low, but people with exposure to infected animals are at higher risk of infection.
" The number of human cases of bird flu is increasing There has been a significant rise in the number of human cases of bird flu connected to livestock across the United States. Recently, California confirmed at least 16 cases of avian influenza – a viral infection that causes severe respiratory issues. Also, Washington State has reported two poultry workers infected with the bug and five others presumed to be positive.
Except for the two people in Missouri, all.
