You are over 65 years old and suffer from other pathologies; is in “critical condition” and “suffers from a serious respiratory illness”.
One first serious case of contamination humana with the virus H5N1 was detected in USA, authorities announced on Wednesday, at a time when fears increase of a possible pandemic bird flu.
The patient, hospitalized in the State of Louisiana, is the 61st human case of bird flu detected since April in the country, said the American Center for Disease Prevention and Control (CDC) in a press release.
Over 65 years old and suffering from other pathologies, he is in “critical state” and “suffers from a severe respiratory disease”, Louisiana health authorities detailed to AFP.
The other infected people showed mild symptoms.
The United States has been facing an epizootic (the equivalent of an epidemic among animals) of bird flu for several months.
Several elements suggest that “bird flu is knocking on our door and could trigger a new pandemic,” Meg Schaeffer, an epidemiologist at the North American institute SAS, recently told AFP.
However, North American health authorities assured on Wednesday that their assessment of the risk presented by bird flu to the public health was not changing and remained “low”.
“No spread of bird flu has been detected [subtipo] H5 from person to person”, they said.
Recent bird flu in people contactless acquaintance with a infected animal reinforces concerns in this regard.
But that’s not the case with the Louisiana patient, who had contact with sick and dead birds on a farm, the CDC said.
At least three people have been infected in recent months with the H5N1 virus in the United States without knowing the source of their contamination: a child in California, an adult in Missouri and probably another individual in Delaware, the CDC reported on Wednesday.
Concerns
One published a few days ago reveals that a single point change in the H5N1 virus could allow it to bind to receptors on human cells, raising concerns that it could transmit more easily to humans.
This analysis only reinforced the concerns of the World Health Organization, which already this year had “huge concerns” about the increasing spread of the H5N1 strain of bird flu to new species – and, potentially, among humans.
Last month, the Austria became a country of risk in relation to bird flu. The entire territory was declared after outbreaks of the H5N1 virus detected in the district of Amstetten (Lower Austria).
In Portugal, in August the General Directorate of Food and Veterinary announced that avian influenza had been detected in seagulls two districts of Aveiro and Faro. But Portugal remained free of influenza in poultry.
Bird flu is very contagious. It occurs mainly in birds and is usually deadly. It also reaches some humans, where it tends to create symptoms similar to those of the common flu; in more extreme (and rare) cases, it can lead to serious complications, such as pneumonia or breathing difficulties.
