In Washington, the first in the world death of a person from the H5N5 bird flu virus occurred. The deceased was a resident of Grays Harbor County and had been in King Hospital since early November. This was reported by the portal «Glavkom» citing the press service of the Department of Health of the state.
Tests conducted at the UW Medicine virology laboratory showed that the virus belongs to the H5N5 strain, making this case the first documented human infection with this variant in the world. The result was confirmed by the Centers for Disease Control and Prevention in the USA. The risk to the population is currently considered low.
Monitoring and detecting potential infections
Medical workers will continue to monitor all who had contact with the patient to ensure that human-to-human transmission of the virus is not possible.
The deceased had a private household with poultry, which may be the source of the infection. According to medical personnel, the bird flu virus was detected in the environment where the birds were kept. People who came into contact with this bird or the environment are being checked for disease symptoms.
Other cases worldwide
It is worth noting that in January, the first human death from a severe case of H5N1 bird flu was reported in Louisiana. The patient was infected with the D1.1 strain of the bird flu virus, which spreads among wild and domestic birds, not among livestock.
The first case of death from the H5N5 bird flu virus has been documented. The virus was found in a Washington resident who had a private household with birds. The question of the virus's spread among humans remains open, so medical personnel continue to monitor potential infected individuals and control the situation.