CDC says third person infected with bird flu – with new symptom

Another human case of bird flu linked to sick dairy cows has been detected in Michigan, marking the third farmworker diagnosed with the disease in the United States since March, the Centers for Disease Control and Prevention said Thursday. Neither case is connected.

This is the second Michigan farmworker in a week to be diagnosed with the disease. And a dairy worker in Texas was diagnosed in March. In these cases, the patients’ only sign of illness was a pink eye.

This last case is different, however, because the patient also had a cough that accompanied ocular symptoms. The person was given Tamiflu and was reportedly recovering.

All farmworkers at this latest Michigan dairy are being monitored for symptoms. The CDC has recommended that anyone who comes into contact with a sick cow watch for symptoms for 10 days.

There is no evidence that the virus, an A strain of flu called H5N1, is spreading from person to person, the CDC said. The infected workers are from different farms and had direct contact with sick cows.

As many as 67 herds in nine states were affected, according to the U.S. Department of Agriculture. In addition to herds in Michigan, dairy cattle in Colorado, Kansas, Idaho, New Mexico, North Carolina, Ohio, South Dakota and Texas have also tested positive for bird flu.

“Given the extent of spread of this virus in dairy cows, additional human cases in people with higher-risk exposures would not be surprising,” the CDC said in a press release.

Federal health officials said the risk of bird flu to the general public remains low.

“The CDC has analyzed data from flu surveillance systems closely, especially in affected states, and there have been no signs of unusual flu activity in people, including in emergency rooms and detection laboratory data,” the agency said in a press release.

The CDC is performing genetic testing on samples of the virus taken from the patient to look for changes that indicate whether it is undergoing mutations that would allow it to spread easily from person to person. These results may be available within a few days.

This is the fourth case of H5N1 overall in the US. An inmate in Colorado who worked on a farm selecting birds suspected of being infected with bird flu was diagnosed in 2022. His only symptom was fatigue.

Globally, fewer than 1,000 human cases of H5N1 have been identified. CDC data shows that more than half of these patients died, but this mortality rate may be overestimated as mild cases may go unnoticed.

O The CDC recommends that anyone in contact with dairy cattle – including bedding and animal feces – wear protective equipment, including safety glasses, waterproof aprons and boots that can be sanitized.

The agency also said people should not drink raw, unpasteurized milk.