Wednesday, December 25

Patient hospitalized with possible bird flu infection in Louisiana

According to state health officials on Friday, a person in Louisiana is in the hospital with what may be the first instance of avian flu in the state.

According to the state Department of Health’s website, the case concerns a resident of southwest Louisiana. The person may have come into contact with sick and deceased birds that were infected with the avian flu virus, H5N1.

They are working with the Centers for Disease Control and Prevention, according to public health experts there. This is the second person in the United States to be hospitalized with the illness.

The CDC will be doing confirmatory tests as the Louisiana Department of Public Health leads the investigation, the agency said in a statement to NBC News.

Since the spring, dairy cows in the United States have been infected with bird flu. According to the Department of Agriculture, as of Friday, the infection had reached 832 dairy herds across 16 states. California is home to the great majority of such herds.

In order to better detect herd infections and stop their spread, the USDA required milk to be tested for avian flu last week.

This year, at least 60 instances of human bird flu have been identified in the United States. Farmworkers who had come into touch with infected poultry or dairy cows were the subjects of the majority of the cases, which have occurred in California and Washington.

That figure is probably understated. There was indications of asymptomatic avian flu infections in farmworkers, according to a CDC analysis from November.

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The propagation of the avian flu from person to person is not supported by any evidence. With the exception of a hospitalized patient in Missouri and a youngster in California, almost all of the individuals who have become ill had direct contact with animals.

Conjunctivitis, or pinkeye, has been the most common symptom described, and the instances have often been regarded as minor.There have been no reported fatalities. Last month, a Canadian youngster who with avian flu became quite sick and had to be admitted to the hospital.

Research on the country’s pasteurized milk supply has so far found no evidence of the contagious avian flu virus.However, unpasteurized raw milk has been proven to contain the virus.

The Louisiana Department of Health provided advice on how to stay healthy:

  • Do not touch sick or dead animals or their droppings, and do not bring sick wild animals into your home.
  • Keep pets away from sick or dead animals and their feces.
  • Avoid uncooked products such as unpasteurized raw milk or cheese from animals that have a suspected or confirmed infection.
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