Human Case Of H5N6 Bird Flu Reported In China

China's Sichuan province reports a 55-year old human case of H5N6 bird flu.

China's Sichuan province reports one 55-year old human case of H5N6 bird flu. The man has been hospitalized in Bazhong city after developing fever and testing positive for the strain on July 6th, 2021, as per the state-run China Global Television Network.

The state-run CCTV said that local officials “activated an emergency response and sterilized the area” . However the report by unnamed expert suggested lower risk of large-scale transmission among humans.

Avian Influenza / Bird Flu-Causes-Symptoms-Treatment- FAQs
Bird flu (avian influenza/avian flu) is a disease caused by an influenza virus (H5N1) that primarily affects birds but can infect humans also.

‘China's Sichuan province reports a 55-year old human case of H5N6 bird flu. The WHO records 32 human cases of such infections with 19 deaths since 2014. A keen look at the strain is employed by the scientific team to warn against any deadly or contagious outbreak. ’

The H5N6 Virus Strain

The H5N6 virus is a potentially dangerous strain found in the flocks of poultry over the years. It was first detected in Laos and the strain holds the capacity to infect humans. In a report last week, the World Health Organisation had confirmed 32 human cases of infections with 19 deaths recorded since 2014 as the virus spread to different countries.

However, the history of the man being involved in work handling poultry was not available. The previous human case of the H5N6 virus before the present one was reported on May 13th this year.

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As bird flu viruses tend to mutate easily, the scientists are having a keen look at the strain to warn against any deadly or contagious outbreak.

“The discovery of this strain now gives us all, the whole world, time to prepare for possible mutations and the possibility to react in a timely way and develop test systems and vaccines," says Anna Popova, Russia's public health chief.

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Source-Medindia