Is Bird Flu Coming Back? They Find a New Alarming Case

WHO scientists have been monitoring cases for a long time bird flu The United States. It is not the only country where they have been detected. In fact, cases have been reported in places as far away as Antarctica. However, the North American country is concerned that the virus has ceased to be a problem unique to poultry and has begun to spread among cows. That is why the few people who have tested positive so far have been farmers and ranchers. However, now all the concern is raised by a new case, as it is a person He does not remember having contact with infected animals.

It is logical that in such a case the first fear that grips everyone is that the virus has finally found a way to spread between people. However, it does not seem that this is exactly what has happened, since there are There are very few reported cases in humans. Because bird flu spreads at breakneck speed among wild and domestic birds, as well as livestock and pets such as cats, it is much more likely that a patient has come into contact with an infected animal without knowing it.

This is not very good news either. The virus is becoming more and more widespread. present in the environmentSo bird flu may no longer be a disease limited to a few professions. The good part of this story is that although this patient was hospitalized with severe symptoms, he eventually made a full recovery with no sequelae. This is good news, but also a sign that it is important to remain vigilant.

What’s going on with bird flu?

All viruses mutate. As they infect new hosts, they create copies of themselves, and in the process of copying They can make mistakes. Sometimes these errors mean nothing positive or negative. Other times they are negative and do not help the pathogen evolve. But in some cases they provide benefits, such as the ability to infect new species. That appears to be what is happening with this strain of bird flu.

Known as highly pathogenic avian influenzaIt has been found to cause more severe symptoms than most known strains. But it can also infect many other animals. It has the ability to jump from birds to a wide variety of mammals and then to humans. It can also be transmitted directly from birds to humans. At the moment, It has not yet mutated enough to be able to spread between people. This is good news, but it is important to monitor the virus closely because that moment may come.

Why is this new case so special?

The current outbreak of bird flu has the highest number of cases in both animals and humans in the United States. There have been many cases reported in birds and especially cows in that country. It has also been noted that the virus can be transmitted to humans. The first case was identified on April 1 and has since been diagnosed. Only 14 people. All but the last were livestock workers who were infected by cows or poultry. Because many patients had eye symptoms, it is thought that some infections may have been acquired through splashes during milkingBut in general, there are many ways to get sick from contact with animals.

The patient causing this new stir tested positive for the flu on August 22 at a hospital in Missouri, one of the states hardest hit by bird flu. The first non-specific test came back positive influenza AHowever, it did not appear to match any human subtypes, so further tests were performed, which showed that he did indeed have bird flu.

The patient has since been discharged with no traces of the virus in his body. However, scientists are continuing to analyse the samples they extracted at the time. The aim is to sequence them to try to determine their origin and find out how the man became infected.

It is important that the population knows what it is precautions must be accepted, and to do this we must understand how infections occur. There are not many questions about this yet, but we can remain calm because this case shows that surveillance systems are working. It may not seem like it, but it is good news.