Bird flu

Humans increasingly infected by dairy cows

Symbol image(Bild: EugeneCernetcov stock.adobe)

The USA has now reported the fourth case of bird flu in humans following contact with infected dairy cows. This time it is a case in the state of Colorado.

As with the previous cases, the woman concerned had worked on a dairy farm and had been exposed to cows in which the H5N1 virus had been detected, the CDC health authority announced on Wednesday.

In April, the first case of bird flu was reported in a worker on a dairy farm in Texas, followed by two further cases in Michigan. The patient in Colorado only showed mild symptoms of bird flu in her eyes and was given an antiviral medication. She has since recovered, it was reported.

However, the CDC again called for precautions for farm workers who come into contact with infected cows. Regarding the case in Colorado, "further genetic analysis" would be done to identify possible virus variants, which "could change the agency's risk assessment" for the population.

Virus increasingly spreading to mammals
The H5N1 avian influenza virus has increasingly spread to mammals in recent months, including dairy cattle in the USA. Numerous herds of cows are infected in several US states; the epidemic was first detected in March.

Several people have also been infected, raising fears of an impending pandemic. In view of the spread of H5N1 in the USA, the chief virologist at Berlin's Charité hospital, Christian Drosten, described the bird flu virus as a possible trigger for a coming pandemic.