On Friday April 5, the Centers for Disease Control and Prevention
(CDC) issued a health alert
network health advisory after a person in
Texas tested
positive for highly
pathogenic avian influenza (HPAI) A(H5N1) virus (“H5N1
bird flu”). This is only the second confirmed human case of H5N1
bird flu in the United States; the first was in a poultry worker
in Colorado in 2022. The CDC alert indicates the current risk to
the general public remains low.
According to the CDC, this person in Texas worked with dairy cows
presumably infected with H5N1 bird flu viruses. This new case is
associated with a multi-state
veterinary outbreak of H5N1 bird flu in U.S. dairy cows. This
case occurs amid ongoing outbreaks of H5N1 bird flu in U.S.
poultry, sporadic infections in a growing number of animal
species, and widespread circulation of this virus in wild birds
globally. According to the CDC, there is no sign of
person-to-person spread of this virus at this time.
While the CDC believes the current risk to the general public
remains low, people with close or long unprotected exposures to
infected birds or other animals (including livestock), or to
environments contaminated by infected birds or other animals, are
at greater risk of infection. The CDC has provided a list of
recommended protective actions for prevention, monitoring,
and public health investigations, including
specific recommendations for farmers; poultry, backyard
flock, and livestock owners; and worker protection.
As reported, this is an emerging and rapidly evolving situation
that the CDC is following closely.
