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A person in Louisiana who was hospitalise with a severe case of bird flu has die .
The hospital care , firstannounced Dec. 13 , punctuate the first severe case of H5N1 bird flu in the United States . H5N1 is a subtype of bird flu that ’s been circulate among wild birds and poultry in the U.S. since 2021 , and in 2024 , it was observe indairy cows for the first clock time . Since then , the computer virus hasinfected at least 66 peoplein the state , principally those who were directly exposed to infected cow or poultry .
H5N1 is a subtype of bird flu that has sickened more than 60 people in the U.S. in the last year.
In the slip of the patient in Louisiana , the accurate source of the infection was initially unknown . However , an probe uncovered that the someone fell ill after vulnerability to a noncommercial backyard flock of hiss , as well as barbarian fowl , according to a statement from theLouisiana Department of Health(LDH ) .
" LDH ’s encompassing public health investigation has identified no extra H5N1 pillow slip nor evidence of somebody - to - person transmission , " the department ’s statement added . " This affected role remains the only human cause of H5N1 in Louisiana . "
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The patient was over the age of 65 and had underlie aesculapian condition , which may have made them more potential to develop a severe dame influenza case . To preserve patient confidentiality and show respect for the patient ’s phratry , the department will not be sharing further updates about the case .
In its initial promulgation about the case , the Centers for Disease Control and Prevention ( CDC ) noted that the computer virus that sickened the Louisiana patient role matched a strain circulating in birds — call the D1.1 genetic constitution — not the one broadcast among cows , called the B3.13 genotype .
Separately , a teen girl in Canada also recently caught the D1.1 genotype and required intensive care in a hospital . She ’s since recovered from the infection , but a late study published inThe New England Journal of Medicinepinpointed several concerning mutations in the computer virus that infect her . These mutations may have further the germ ’s power to infect man and to cause terrible illness .
Acommentary write in the same journalnoted that it ’s unclear whether these mutations were already present when the teen became infected or if they emerged as the computer virus replicated in her body . Nonetheless , the case highlighted the continued need to monitor the virus ’s banquet to see if such mutations are becoming more banal , the comment authors wrote .
" While the current public health risk for the general public remains grim , people who work with dame , poultry or cows , or have recreational exposure to them , are at higher peril [ of fascinate H5N1 ] , " LDH official noted in the statement .
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" The respectable way to protect yourself and your kinsperson from H5N1 is to head off generator of picture , " they add up . " That means avoiding unmediated contact with wild birds and other animal taint with or suspected to be infected with bird flu viruses . " consume Cartesian product made with raw Milk River could also pose a jeopardy of contagion , wellness officials have previously warned .
If you ’ve been exposed to potentially infected animals and develop respiratory symptoms or eye inflammation within 10 years , the department urge informing your wellness forethought supplier so they can provide the appropriate testing and discussion . Antiviral drugs used to handle seasonal flu — such as oseltamivir ( Tamiflu ) — have been used to regale bird flu .
Historically , of the more than900 people known to have overhear H5N1 globally , more than one-half have died . These previous last affected people outside the U.S. and involved H5N1 extend with different genetic traitsthat might help explain their severity .
This clause is for informational purposes only and is not meant to volunteer aesculapian advice .
