<span style="font-family: 'Arial',sans-serif; mso-fareast-font-family: 'Times New Roman'; mso-bidi-font-family: 'Times New Roman'; color: #001e2f; background: white; mso-font-kerning: 0pt; mso-ligatures: none; mso-fareast-language: EN-GB;">A patient in the US state of Louisiana has become the first person dead of bird flu, or H5N1, in the United States, authorities said.&nbsp;
<span style="font-family: 'Arial',sans-serif; mso-fareast-font-family: 'Times New Roman'; mso-bidi-font-family: 'Times New Roman'; color: #001e2f; background: white; mso-font-kerning: 0pt; mso-ligatures: none; mso-fareast-language: EN-GB;">The Louisiana Department of Health confirmed in a news release that the patient had been hospitalised with the first human case of highly pathogenic avian influenza, Xinhua news agency reported.
<span style="font-family: 'Arial',sans-serif; mso-fareast-font-family: 'Times New Roman'; mso-bidi-font-family: 'Times New Roman'; color: #001e2f; background: white; mso-font-kerning: 0pt; mso-ligatures: none; mso-fareast-language: EN-GB;">The patient was over the age of 65 and was reported to have underlying medical conditions, said the department, adding that the patient contracted H5N1 after exposure to a combination of a non-commercial backyard flock and wild birds.<span style="font-family: 'Arial',sans-serif; mso-fareast-font-family: 'Times New Roman'; mso-bidi-font-family: 'Times New Roman'; color: #001e2f; background: white; mso-font-kerning: 0pt; mso-ligatures: none; mso-fareast-language: EN-GB;">&nbsp;
<span style="font-family: 'Arial',sans-serif; mso-fareast-font-family: 'Times New Roman'; mso-bidi-font-family: 'Times New Roman'; color: #001e2f; background: white; mso-font-kerning: 0pt; mso-ligatures: none; mso-fareast-language: EN-GB;">The department noted that the patient remains the only human case of H5N1 in the southeastern US state and the department's extensive public health investigation has identified no additional H5N1 cases nor evidence of person-to-person transmission.
<span style="font-family: 'Arial',sans-serif; mso-fareast-font-family: 'Times New Roman'; mso-bidi-font-family: 'Times New Roman'; color: #001e2f; background: white; mso-font-kerning: 0pt; mso-ligatures: none; mso-fareast-language: EN-GB;">While the current public health risk for the general public remains low, people who work with birds, poultry or cows, or have recreational exposure to them, are at higher risk, state officials warned, adding that the best way to protect people from H5N1 is to avoid sources of exposure.
<span style="font-family: 'Arial',sans-serif; mso-fareast-font-family: 'Times New Roman'; mso-bidi-font-family: 'Times New Roman'; color: #001e2f; background: white; mso-font-kerning: 0pt; mso-ligatures: none; mso-fareast-language: EN-GB;">The US Centers for Disease Control and Prevention (CDC) said in a statement on Monday that the agency "is saddened" by the death.<span style="font-family: 'Arial',sans-serif; mso-fareast-font-family: 'Times New Roman'; mso-bidi-font-family: 'Times New Roman'; color: #001e2f; background: white; mso-font-kerning: 0pt; mso-ligatures: none; mso-fareast-language: EN-GB;">&nbsp;
<span style="font-family: 'Arial',sans-serif; mso-fareast-font-family: 'Times New Roman'; mso-bidi-font-family: 'Times New Roman'; color: #001e2f; background: white; mso-font-kerning: 0pt; mso-ligatures: none; mso-fareast-language: EN-GB;">"While tragic, a death from H5N1 bird flu in the United States is not unexpected because of the known potential for infection with these viruses to cause severe illness and death," the agency added.
<span style="font-family: 'Arial',sans-serif; mso-fareast-font-family: 'Times New Roman'; mso-bidi-font-family: 'Times New Roman'; color: #001e2f; background: white; mso-font-kerning: 0pt; mso-ligatures: none; mso-fareast-language: EN-GB;">As of Monday, there have been 66 confirmed human cases of H5N1 bird flu in the US since 2024 and 67 since 2022. Outside the US, more than 950 cases of H5N1 bird flu have been reported to the World Health Organization; about half of those have resulted in death, according to CDC.
<span style="font-family: 'Arial',sans-serif; mso-fareast-font-family: 'Times New Roman'; mso-bidi-font-family: 'Times New Roman'; color: #001e2f; background: white; mso-font-kerning: 0pt; mso-ligatures: none; mso-fareast-language: EN-GB;">CDC pointed out that no person-to-person transmission spread has been identified. The agency said it has carefully studied the available information about the person who died in Louisiana and continues to assess that the risk to the general public remains low.
<span style="font-family: 'Arial',sans-serif; mso-fareast-font-family: 'Times New Roman'; mso-bidi-font-family: 'Times New Roman'; color: #001e2f; background: white; mso-font-kerning: 0pt; mso-ligatures: none; mso-fareast-language: EN-GB;">&mdash;IANS

66 Cases of bird flu have been reported in US since 2024 (File Photo)

The patient's age was 65 years & was reported to have been contracted with H5N1 due to exposure of wild birds

First Person to Die from Bird Flu: US Reported

The patient's age was 65 years & was reported to have been contracted with H5N1 due to exposure of wild birds

January 7, 2025 | 14:31 IST