Person infected with bird flu had no contact with animals — here’s why experts are concerned
A person in Missouri has been diagnosed with bird flu — despite never coming into conℱtact with any animals, the Centers for Disease Control and Prevention announced on Friday.
The adult, who was hospitalized on Aug. 22, has recovered, however the case adds to growing national anxiety about the virus as the p🅰atient is the first in the country to contract the disease without contact with poultry and dairy animals.
The CDC assured that the ris♉k among the general public💛 “remains low.”
“The question now is: How did this patient acquire the infection?” Dr. William Schaffner, an infectious diseases expert at Vanderbilt University Medical Center in Nashville, . “We need a very, very thorough investigation.”
While the Missouri patient is only the 14th person in the US to contract the H5N1 Bird Flu this year, at least 196 herds of dairy cows in 14 states have confirmed outbreaks of tജhe ✨virus since the outbreak was first reported in March,
Outbreaks in🌸 🐬poultry have been confirmed in 48 states.
Missouri has reported outbreaks of the disease among cattle, but🎃 commercial and backyard poultry flocks have contracted the virus, the CDC said.
There has been no evidence that this latest bird🍨 flu strain has been spreading from person to person.
The sample from the Missouri patient will need to be studied in the laboratory to see whether the virus might have mutated, making it eas💦ier for human to human transmission, Schaffner told NBC News.
“The results of this investigation will be particula🦂rly important in light of the current lack of an obvious animal exposure,” the CDC said in its announcement Friday. “It is important to note that, while rare, there have been novel [bird flu] cases where an animal source cannot be iden♍tified. “
Missouri health officials that there has been no sign of unusual influenza activity among its residents, including no upticks in emergency room visits or laboratory detection of the h🃏uman flu in the state.
A sample from the infected patients was sent from the Missouri Staಞte Public Health Laboratory to the CDC for additiona𒈔l testing, state officials said.
The patient, who has pre-existing health conditions, has been released from the hospital and is rec🌜overing at home.
No transmission of the virus has been identified among the patient’s close associates.
