A Washington resident has become infected with a new strain of bird flu, showing that the virus can mutate. Health officials are concerned that the mutations could result in a variety of the flu that is communicable in people.
The infected person is a resident of Grays Harbor County and is one of about 70 people nationwide to have contracted bird flu. The patient was described as being severely ill and remains hospitalized after developing a high fever, confusion, and difficulty breathing.
Most of the people who have become infected work in the poultry or dairy industries.
Previous human detections in the United States have involved the H5N1 strain, which infected thousands of cattle, as well as commercial poultry and wild birds, in the past two years. Millions of poultry have been destroyed because they were infected with the virus.
The Washington resident is the first person to be infected with the H5N5 strain. Most human cases involving H5N1 have been mild, but one man died in January in Louisiana.
“The affected person (in Washington) has a mixed backyard flock of domestic poultry at home that had exposure to wild birds. The domestic poultry or wild birds are the most likely source of virus exposure; however, public health investigation is ongoing,” according to a statement from the Washington health department .
“The Washington State Department of Health is working with the local health department and the Washington State Department of Agriculture to complete exposure and animal health investigations.”
Washington has had dozens of detections of avian flu in wild birds, waterfowl, and backyard poultry in the past weeks, which is in line with a national spike in activity.
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