The first case of bird flu in humans (in this country, ed.) was diagnosed in Chile. This was reported by the Ministry of Health of Chile on Wednesday local time. The H5N1 virus was detected in a 53-year-old man from the north of the country. According to the authorities, the patient’s condition is stable.
They are currently investigating where the man could have contracted the virus. An investigation into the contacts has also been launched.
Chile’s Ministry of Health is urging citizens to keep their distance from sick or dead birds or mammals, and urging poultry workers to follow appropriate safety protocols and get vaccinated against “common” flu.
Late last year, Chile reported several cases of bird flu among wild birds. However, the virus was recently detected in poultry farms, where the government imposed restrictions on the export of poultry and poultry products. The bird flu virus was also recently detected in poultry farms in neighboring Argentina. Brazil, the world’s largest exporter of poultry, is still recovering from the virus. At the beginning of this year, a 9-year-old girl in Ecuador was infected with the virus – she survived the infection.
The H5N1 virus, also known as “bird flu,” is a virus that can be transmitted from birds or marine mammals to humans, but there are no known cases of human-to-human transmission. Therefore, health authorities assess the risk of human-to-human transmission as very low, but vaccine manufacturers have already prepared bird flu shots for humans as a precaution. These vaccines can be adapted to the currently dominant variant of the virus.
Read also: An 11-year-old girl died of bird flu and new cases in mammals. Could this turn into a new pandemic? (+)
Source : HLN
