Bird flu: humans infected with H5N8 strain for first time in Russia

[Dogsauce]

Thickos are going to start killing farm cats now, aren’t they?

 

[existentialist]

Your parents must have been bohemian !
We didn't even have anything remotely "foreign" in the house.

I was vegetarian DESPITE my parents. My mother spent my childhood trying to sneak meat into food, and then triumphantly announcing that she'd done so when I ate it.

I still harbour a deep, deep suspicion of soup

 

[Dystopiary]

The first confirmed case of bird flu in dairy cows has been found in Minnesota, USA.

First case of bird flu detected in Minnesota dairy cows

 

[two sheds]

Have we had this?

WHO confirms first death in Mexico from bird flu never seen in humans

The 59-year-old was the first lab-confirmed human case of infection with A(H5N2) subtype of the virus which has been reported in poultry in the country.

www.nbcnews.com

 

[2hats]

The first confirmed case in cows "in Minnesota". H5N1 has been confirmed multiple times over recent months in numerous herds across a number of US states.

The H5N2 Mexican case is more interesting, with the individual concerned having no apparent history of having had any contact with any livestock (in particular poultry, which has been implicated in the past in Mexico).

Man dies from H5N2 avian flu in Mexico; Minnesota reports first case in dairy cow

www.cidrap.umn.edu

Human infection caused by avian Influenza A(H5N2)- Mexico

On 23 May 2024, the Mexico International Health Regulations (IHR) National Focal Point (NFP) reported to PAHO/WHO a confirmed fatal case of human infection with avian influenza A(H5N2) virus detected in a resident of the State of Mexico who was hospitalized in Mexico City. This is the first...

www.who.int

 

[Yossarian]

Been some worrying updates over the last couple of months - testing of dairy workers is reportedly "woefully inadequate"

So far, bird flu testing of this cohort has been woefully inadequate. Testing is usually under the purview of state authorities following federal Centers for Disease Control and Prevention guidelines. Tests are recommended for symptomatic workers. The exact number of dairy workers and other people who have so far been tested for H5N1 is not publicly available at the federal level. There is no excuse to continue only limited testing of this vulnerable population. Any serious surveillance efforts of H5N1 demand that the country do better to ensure proper testing and health care is provided to these workers now, lest we risk being caught flat-footed by a new pandemic so soon after Covid.

This is especially important for a work force whose broader social and economic circumstances may discourage them from seeking out timely testing and treatment. A majority of hired farmworkers in the United States are from Mexico and Central American countries; many lack authorization to work here legally. Undocumented workers may be worried about public health reporting systems putting them at risk for immigration enforcement or preventing future chances of gaining a visa or permanent residency status.

https://archive.ph/UCklJ

 

[Yuwipi Woman]

Been some worrying updates over the last couple of months - testing of dairy workers is reportedly "woefully inadequate"

So far, bird flu testing of this cohort has been woefully inadequate. Testing is usually under the purview of state authorities following federal Centers for Disease Control and Prevention guidelines. Tests are recommended for symptomatic workers. The exact number of dairy workers and other people who have so far been tested for H5N1 is not publicly available at the federal level. There is no excuse to continue only limited testing of this vulnerable population. Any serious surveillance efforts of H5N1 demand that the country do better to ensure proper testing and health care is provided to these workers now, lest we risk being caught flat-footed by a new pandemic so soon after Covid.

This is especially important for a work force whose broader social and economic circumstances may discourage them from seeking out timely testing and treatment. A majority of hired farmworkers in the United States are from Mexico and Central American countries; many lack authorization to work here legally. Undocumented workers may be worried about public health reporting systems putting them at risk for immigration enforcement or preventing future chances of gaining a visa or permanent residency status.

https://archive.ph/UCklJ

Some of it is logistically impossible. Nebraska has six million cattle. The CDC wants to test everyone each week. While testing is inadequate and worker protections are as well, they need to ask for something that's reasonable. The goal is to protect the public and turning those who will be doing the testing off with impossible tasks isn't helpful.

 

[yield]

Is bird flu spreading among people? Data gaps leave researchers in the dark
Nature. 19 September 2024

All eyes are on Missouri.

Researchers are anxiously awaiting data from the midwestern state about a mysterious bird flu infection in a person who had no known contact with potential animal carriers of the disease. The data could reveal whether the ongoing US bird flu outbreak in dairy cattle has reached a dreaded turning point: the emergence of a virus capable of spreading from human to human.

Thus far, data from the mysterious infection are few and far between: small snippets of the H5N1 virus’s genome sequence and an incomplete infection timeline. Ratcheting up concerns is the fact that no Missouri dairy farms have reported a bird flu outbreak; this might be because there really are no infections, or because the state does not require farmers to test their cows for the virus.

“The fear is that the virus is spreading within the community at low levels, and this is the first time that we’re detecting it,” says Scott Hensley, a viral immunologist at the University of Pennsylvania Perelman School of Medicine in Philadelphia. “There’s no data to suggest that to be the case, but that’s the fear.”

Too many unknowns. I'm suprised by the lack of testing in the USA.

 

[Ax^]

hmm is it a GOP/Republican state

why yes it is