avian flu outbreak

Vaccination also could delay outbreak detection, since it can potentially hide non-apparent infections in infected birds. Comparing information about these newer viruses to previously circulating H5N1 bird flu viruses helps inform the human health risk assessment. The patient recovered after experiencing a few days of fatigue. This version of the influenza virus doesn't affect "broilers" chickens raised for meat as badly it does "layers" table-egg laying hens and turkeys. No known human-to-human spread has occurred with the A (H5N1) virus that is currently circulating in birds in the United States and globally. Experts are concerned that a new global disease outbreak, possibly worse than Covid-19, might begin any day. Avian influenza Type A viruses (bird flu viruses) do not normally infect people, but rare cases of human infection have occurred with some bird flu viruses. Denise Chow is a reporter for NBC News Science focused on general science and climate change. A University of Maryland (UMD)-led team of researchers tracked the arrival and progression of the deadly bird flu (H5N1) in North America to determine how this outbreak is different from previous ones. Nathan Howard/Getty Images This can happen when virus is in the air (in droplets or possibly dust) and a person breathes it in, or possibly when a person touches something that has virus on it and then touches their mouth, eyes or nose. Scientists continue to monitor the ongoing global avian influenza outbreak also referred to as bird flu that has killed millions of birds and has now crossed over to some species of mammals. The third and most worrisome reason that this virus is getting so much press is that H5N1 now seems to be transmitting well between individuals of at least one mammalian species. Because H5N1 doesnt spread well between people, and because direct infection of humans by infected birds is still relatively rare, H5N1 has not yet erupted into a human epidemic or pandemic. Higher prices for eggs and poultry meat in the U.S. are one result. The Powers Farm white turkey flock is seen under shelter as part of an effort to prevent exposure to avian influenza on Nov. 14, 2022 in Townsend, Del. Evan Bush is a science reporter for NBC News. Thats when production of eggs is hammered.. Avian influenza A (H5N1) was first detected in the Region of the Americas in birds in December 2014. Over the centuries, some of these avian influenza viruses have been passed from birds to humans and other mammalian species, although this is a relatively rare event. hide caption. The virus can take commercial poultry farms out of commission for extended periods. ", Liu Guanguan/China News Service via Getty Images, Centers for Disease Control and Prevention, Zoos across North America are moving birds indoors to protect them from avian flu, Bird flu outbreak drives Nebraska to cull 1.8 million more chickens, Bald eagles around the U.S. are contracting the bird flu. ScienceDaily, 19 April 2023. Linking to a non-federal website does not constitute an endorsement by CDC or any of its employees of the sponsors or the information and products presented on the website. As H5N1 infects more species, it also increases its geographical range and produces more viral variants that could have new biological properties. AI viruses are classified by a combination of two groups of proteins: hemagglutinin or "H" proteins, of which there . But scientists didn't know until the recent outbreak how infected condors would fare. Human infections with bird flu viruses have most often occurred after close or lengthy unprotected contact (i.e., not wearing gloves or respiratory protection or eye protection) with infected birds or places that sick birds or their saliva, mucous and feces have touched. How do we track it in wild birds? There are ongoing outbreaks of HPAI in wild birds in Asia, Europe and Africa. Rescued chickens gather last year in an aviary at Farm Sanctuarys Southern California Sanctuary in Acton, Calif. In January, Insider's George Glover explained the egg crisis facing Americans as prices surged by almost 60% in 2022 due to the influenza outbreak. Top editors give you the stories you want delivered right to your inbox each weekday. newsletter for analysis you wont find anywhereelse. Do we test the water or the soil? Materials provided by University of Maryland. The virus that worries them is H5N1, a form of avian influenza, or bird flu. World Economic Forum articles may be republished in accordance with the Creative Commons Attribution-NonCommercial-NoDerivatives 4.0 International Public License, and in accordance with our Terms of Use. Avian flu viruses have evolved to infect cells of the intestine, while human flu viruses have evolved to infect cells of the respiratory tract. CHICAGO Avian flu has wiped out 50.54 million birds in the United States this year, making it the countrys deadliest outbreak in history, U.S. Department of Agriculture data showed on Thursday. Bird flu US egg factory roasts alive 5.3m chickens in avian flu cull - then fires almost every worker Laborers worked for a month disposing of birds killed in a gruesomely inhumane manner.. And since its arrival in North America, the avian influenza virus has continued to change. https://www.pbs.org/newshour/nation/what-consumers-need-to-know-about-the-avian-flu-outbreak, As avian flu spreads, North American zoos take precautions to protect birds, Americans may soon pay more for milk, cheese as rising heat stresses livestock, For Midwest farmers, floodwaters threaten millions in crop and livestock losses, outbreak of highly pathogenic avian influenza, depression, coughing and sneezing and sudden death, the risk to public health from this outbreak is low, last H5N1 outbreak in the U.S. in 2014 and 2015, travel thousands of miles between continents, eradicate HPAI quickly after it is detected. What are the triggers for different actions, and how do we measure if we're succeeding? "The bird populations haven't seen viruses like this before," Webby says, "so in terms of their immune response, they're all immunologically nave to this" influenza virus. An outbreak of avian influenza in seabirds in the Gambia could affect vast numbers of birds migrating along the East Atlantic Flyway, unless international funding is secured, warn conservationists. The H5N1 strain is causing a variety of new problems and has killed more than 58 million birds. In the U.S. the virus has led to the destruction of millions of commercially raised chickens, turkeys, ducks, and geese, and has killed thousands of wild birds. More information about bird flu in humans is available at Bird Flu Virus Infections in Humans. Another central issue is the difficulty of surveillance of knowing whether a bird is infected with a deadly influenza virus but isn't showing symptoms because they've been vaccinated. The new H5N1 strain has already killed over 58 million chickens, turkeys, and other birds, Reuters reported. However, sometimes a flu virus can acquire mutations that allow it to infect cells in a different part of the body. As of early April, the outbreak had caused the culling of some 23 million birds from Maine to Wyoming. By University of Colorado Boulder But lab tests soon revealed something scarier: a deadly avian influenza virus named H5N1. "Rarely, we see crossover from birds into humans, with the current circulating . By the end of December, more than 43 million egg-laying hens were lost to the disease itself or to depopulation since the . The virus has hit many turkey farms but because those operations tend to be smaller and the cases have been spread out over time and space, producers have mostly been able to absorb the losses, building up stocks of frozen turkey ahead of the end-of-year holidays. "Why this bird flu is different: Scientists say new avian influenza requires urgent coordinated response." "Unlike H5N8, this disease is heavily impacting wild birds," said Johanna Harvey, a postdoctoral researcher at UMD and lead author of the study. Thank you for taking the time to confirm your preferences. These cookies may also be used for advertising purposes by these third parties. Schwab Foundation for Social Entrepreneurship, Centre for the Fourth Industrial Revolution, 3 things the world is doing to prepare for the next pandemic, The world needs a COP-like process for pandemic preparedness. For more information about prevention, especially for people who keep domesticated birds or are bird-watching hobbyists, the Centers for Disease Control has a list of guidelines for avoiding H5N1 and other bird flu viruses. Then the site is decontaminated. The paper was published April 19, 2023, in the journal Conservation Biology. Visit CDCs avian influenza (bird flu) information for health professional and laboratorians webpage for the latest guidance. The team also suggests that H5N1 will likely become endemic, potentially posing risks to food security and the economy. Efforts to prevent infections in commercial and backyard flocks are ongoing, but slowing the outbreak has been challenging because the virus seems to have gained a foothold in species of wild birds, said Biao He, a professor of infectious diseases at the University of Georgia College of Veterinary Medicine. Cookies used to make website functionality more relevant to you. In addition, more than 58 million domestic poultry were infected or had to be culled to limit the spread of infection in the U.S. and 7 million in Canada. Speedy Robo-Gripper Reflexively Organizes What Made Us Human? A key part of the challenge, Webby says, is that like the SARS-CoV-2 virus, the avian flu virus has spun off several variants of concern. The virus transmits very, very rapidly within the flock, so even if birds dont appear sick, they will eventually die very soon, Lorenzoni said. If you do not allow these cookies we will not know when you have visited our site, and will not be able to monitor its performance. The more than 50,000 mink at the facility were killed and their carcasses destroyed. Centers for Disease Control and Prevention. Which cells influenza infects is partially dictated by the specific receptor that it binds. Some birds have died from the disease itself, but the vast majority are being culled through flock "depopulation," to try to stop the virus from spreading. The spread of bird flu viruses from one infected person to a close contact is very rare, and when it has happened, it has not led to continued spread among people. The deaths of chickens, turkeys and other birds represent the worst U.S. animal-health disaster to date, topping the previous record of 50.5 million birds that died in an avian-flu outbreak in 2015. CDC twenty four seven. Better known as bird . According to the U.S. Department of Agriculture (USDA), the outbreak of Highly Pathogenic Avian Influenza (H5N1) has led to over 23 million bird deaths in 24 states. Bird flu has led to the death and slaughter of 316 million poultry worldwide . What is the World Economic Forum doing about fighting pandemics? The USDAs Defend the Flock Program includes, for instance, information on biosecurity measures and how to spot signs of illness. Remember that the seasonal flu vaccine must be remade every year, even though the general types of flu viruses that it protects against are the same, because the specific genetic variants that affect humans change from year to year. Importers would not be able to distinguish vaccinated birds from infected birds based on the routine testing, so they might ban all U.S. poultry exports. Some strains, like the version of H5N1 that is currently spreading, are frequently. One of the people infected in Cambodia, an 11-year-old girl, died from the illness. Bird flu infections in people are rare, but possible. University of Colorado Boulder virologists Sara Sawyer, Emma Worden-Sapper and Sharon Wu summarize the compelling story of H5N1 and why scientists are closely watching the outbreak. Wild birds like ducks transmit the virus, known as highly pathogenic avian influenza, through their feces, feathers or direct contact with poultry. In the U.S. the virus has led to the destruction of millions of commercially raised chickens, turkeys, ducks, and geese, and has killed thousands of wild birds.. Human infections with bird flu viruses can happen when virus gets into a persons eyes, nose or mouth, or is inhaled. "So, yes, we certainly saw an increase in turkey prices in this holiday season," Hagerman says, "but not as much as we might have anticipated given the extent of this outbreak.". A highly pathogenic avian influenza virus "can cause disease that affects multiple internal organs with mortality up to 90% to 100%in chickens, often within 48 hours," the CDC notes. In late 2022, mammal-to-mammal spread occurred in Spain in farmed minks. Liu Guanguan/China News Service via Getty Images We are also mammals. In January, the dangerous H5N1 flu virus was found in an American wigeon duck in South Carolina the first U.S. case since 2016, according to the Centers for Disease Control and Prevention. If allowed to spread unfettered, the pathogen could evolve in such a way that makes it more devastating or harder to control. Yuko Sato is an associate professor of veterinary medicine at Iowa State University. Avian influenza viruses change slowly over time, but the right mutation could make them more transmissible in people and other species, says Ian Barr, deputy director of the World Health . More than 60% of U.S. broiler . A man weighs and checks his flock of white turkeys at his family's farm last year in Townsend, Del. Virus can be fatal. hide caption. Thank you. *Highly pathogenic avian influenza (HPAI) and Low pathogenic avian influenza (LPAI) are described in the Classification of bird flu viruses section. The unprecedented spread of disease and 2022's high inflation rates raising farmers' costs caused the jump and it doesn't look like it will change soon. There are only a small handful of examples of human-to-human spread. "Why this bird flu is different: Scientists say new avian influenza requires urgent coordinated response." Scientists who monitor wild bird flocks have also detected a reassortant virus that contains genes from both the Eurasian H5 and low pathogenic North American viruses. "That gave us a really powerful . It is safe to eat properly handled and cooked poultry in the United States. HPAI caused high mortality in poultry, but infections were sporadic and contained. .chakra .wef-facbof{display:inline;}@media screen and (min-width:56.5rem){.chakra .wef-facbof{display:block;}}You can unsubscribe at any time using the link in our emails. H5N1 is a specific type of influenza virus, predominantly harbored by birds, that was first detected on a goose farm in China in 1996. Right now, the best way people can protect themselves from H5N1 is to avoid contact with infected birds. The poultry industry has been credited with surveillance and prevention of avian influenza but the virus remains a threat. Avian influenza can spread quickly and appears to be almost 100% fatal for some species. Six main hemagglutinin (HA) subtypes of bird flu viruses have infected people to cause acute respiratory illness (H3, H5, H6, H7, H9, and H10 viruses). It's the worst toll on the poultry industry since 2014-2015, when more than 50 million birds died. Poultry can become infected through direct exposure to wild birds but more likely from fecal matter that contaminates the ground around farms or yards. However, vaccines could be used to help control an outbreak, and this is an option that the agency is investigating now. The sun can, for instance, naturally disinfect surfaces while gloomier days help viral particles survive on surfaces contaminated by infected bird poop, Lorenzoni said. The current wave of H5N1 avian fluan influenza type A virus that first emerged in Chinese poultry in 1996 and has been circulating worldwide ever sincearrived in . This is because bird influenza viruses must mutate in several ways to infect mammals efficiently. 1996 - 2023 NewsHour Productions LLC. The US is currently experiencing its worst-ever outbreak of bird flu, also known as avian influenza and a new study has found that the strain could become endemic in the country. Image:REUTERS/Navesh Chitrakar. The latest outbreak of avian flu may have also shifted to a year-round disease from a more seasonal disease in previous outbreaks.

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