US Reports First H5N9 Bird Flu Outbreak in Poultry: As the United States grapples with bird flu outbreak, a new strain of bird flu — H5N9 — has been detected in California’s Merced County at a commercial duck operation.
According to the World Organization of Animal Health (WOAH), testing of ducks at the farm showed the animals had been infected by both the H5N1 and H5N9 strains. A report by LA Times reveals that the new strain is a combination of the H5N1 strain that has been widely detected across the world and likely a “low-pathogenic” bird flu virus.
Moreover, WOAH’s Richard Webby maintains that the combination that occurred in this population of commercial ducks is unlikely to increase the likelihood of a human pandemic.
Webby said that the virus was no bigger threat to human health than the current H5N1 strains circulating in dairy cows, commercial poultry and wild animals, LA Times reported. However, were there to be genetic reassortment between H5N1 and a human seasonal flu, that could be a problem. Such a combination might provide the bird flu with the equipment it needs to pass more easily and efficiently between people, LA Times reported.
According to the Centers for Disease Control and Prevention, 67 people in the U.S. have been infected with H5N1 bird flu. One person has died. “This is the first confirmed case of HPAI (high pathogenic avian influenza) H5N9 in poultry in the United States,” the USDA said in a report to the World Organization for Animal Health. “The USDA animal and plant health inspection service (APHIS), in conjunction with state animal health and wildlife officials, are conducting comprehensive epidemiological investigations and enhanced surveillance in response to the HPAI related events.”
So far, there have been no reports of any human becoming infected with H5N9.
How H5N1 and H5N9 are different?
H5N1 and H5N9 are both strains of avian flu. H5N9 is a rare form of the influenza A virus that causes highly pathogenic avian influenza (HPAI), also known as bird flu. A CBS report reveals that H5N1 has been the dominant grouping of strains fueling this past year’s outbreaks in the United States with different variants of that virus spreading in wild birds, poultry flocks, dairy cattle, pets and into at least 67 confirmed human cases. Both strains can cause HPAI, which can cause these symptoms in humans, as per the CDC:
- eye redness
- mild flu-like upper respiratory symptoms
- pneumonia requiring hospitalization
- fever
- cough
- sore throat
- runny or stuff nose
- muscle or body aches
- headaches
- fatigue
- shortness of breath
Highly pathogenic bird flu (HPAI) is of rising concern to epidemiologists. The US National Library of Medicine lists H5N9 as a subtype avian influenza virus.
“Whether this novel H5N9 virus will cause human infections from its avian host and become a pandemic subtype is not known yet,” a research paper from 2015 warns. “It is therefore imperative to assess the risk of emergence of this novel reassortant virus with potential transmissibility to public health.” H5N9 has been seen before in U.S. birds, but often it results in less severe symptoms, called “low pathogenic avian influenza” by veterinarians.
How to prevent bird flu?
According to Cleveland Clinics, you can reduce the risk of bird flu by the following ways:
- Wear protective clothing when working with birds, wild animals and livestock
- Wash your hands frequently when handling birds, wild animals and livestock or after being in areas where they live.
- Don’t work with animals who are sick or who’ve been exposed to avian influenza
- Don’t touch or drink unpasteurized milk.
- Get a seasonal flu shot