Human-to-human spread of bird flu warning: is another pandemic approaching?

bird flu This is not new, far from it. However, in recent years, especially in 2024, scientists have become much more concerned about this. Highly pathogenic variant H5N1 virus made a huge leap to mammals, infecting wild animals, domestic animals and livestock. The latter stands out first of all, because in USA already there 238 dairy cow farms affected. Many of these cows transmitted the virus People, as birds already did in their time. That bird flu could spread to our species is nothing new. But this would be true if the virus could spread between people, as this would give it a greater chance of becoming a pandemic. Until now it seemed that this had not happened. However, a new series of cases has raised all the alarms.

It all started last August when a very sick patient was admitted to the hospital. Missouri Hospital. His initial symptoms were those of the flu, but the illness became more complicated. vomiting, diarrhea and chest pain. He had previous pathologies, so the flu traditional this may prove difficult. Despite this, PCR was carried out to check which virus had infected his cells. It was a big surprise for me to learn that it was avian flu.

It would not be so surprising if the man had contact with infected animals. However, he comes from an area where there are no infected herds and he has not been in contact with any animals, wild or domestic. Even with birds. The origin of the infection remained a mystery, but the situation became even more alarming when it turned out that 7 people Those with him, a family member and six health care workers also developed symptoms. Has the terrible human infection of bird flu arrived?

Mysterious bird flu

Viruses mutate continuously. Each time they infect new cells, they create new copies of themselves. In this copying process, errors may be made in the form of mutations in its genetic material. Some mutations can be fatal to them. Others are neutral, bringing no benefit or harm to the virus. The problem comes with those that provide benefits such as ability to infect new species.

One of these mutations once gave bird flu the ability to infect mammals. In the USA, cows are fattened. It can spread between them without problems, and can also jump from them to other species, such as humans. own milk This is a huge source of viruses, so it is highly recommended not to consume raw milk. Milkers are one of the most affected occupational groups, as a simple splash in the eyes can transmit the disease.

The virus variant affecting American livestock is highly pathogenic and has a very high mortality rate in humans. This could be more than 50%. So it’s nice that the virus hasn’t yet found a mutation that would allow it to spread from one person to another. If this happened, then Pandemic risk That would be very high.

That’s why this new turn that bird flu has taken in the United States is so concerning. Following the discovery of a mysterious positive result in Missouri, a relative of the patient and six health care workers who treated him developed symptoms. Only one of them had PCR. who tested negative for avian influenza virus. The rest did not take any tests. Fortunately, everyone recovered without complications. But their cases continue to concern the scientific and medical community.

What could have happened?

We hope that, like the person who took the test, the others also did not get bird flu. We can’t forget that there are others many respiratory viruses that cause similar symptoms, from SARS CoV-2, which causes COVID-19, to other influenza viruses.

Since all these people have already had this disease, it would be useless to perform PCR on them. However, an antibody test may shed light on this mystery. When someone has had an infection, their immune system develops. memory antibodies which can then be detected in your blood. They are specific to the virus in question, so you can find out which one is causing your symptoms.

Four health care workers are expected to be tested, but results are not yet available. If infection with avian influenza virus is confirmed, extreme precautions should be taken. prevent a pandemic like Covid-19.

On the positive side, it is estimated that there were some 94 medical workers had contact with the patientwithout a mask, and only 6 showed symptoms. It is unlikely that they were infected with avian influenza; it is more likely that the symptoms are caused by another respiratory virus.

Even so, the focus must continue to be on the virus. Respiratory virus season is approaching in the northern hemisphere, and if one were to reunite with a bird flu virus, it could give it a dangerous ability to spread between people. We will remain attentive. For now, if we stick with the CDC’s calm, it looks like the risk is low.