Bird flu found in another herd of Iowa dairy cows

Bird flu is again spreading in Iowa and across the country — this time, it’s not just birds at risk. KCCI learned on Wednesday that the disease was found in an O’Brien County herd of 4,500 dairy cows, the state’s first reported case of Highly Pathogenic Avian Influenza within a dairy, according to a news release. State officials on Friday said it had been confirmed in another herd of 250 dairy cows on a Sioux County farm. Phillip Jardon, an ISU Extension Veterinarian says cows diagnosed with bird flu must be separated from the herd but, unlike poultry flocks that are infected, cattle do not need to be destroyed and can recover with supportive care.Bird flu is most commonly spread from bird-to-bird and other animals, including dairy cows. While the virus can spread to people as well, the World Health Organization says the risk is low. Most people who contract bird flu experience symptoms like pink eye.WATCH: Bird flu found in another herd of Iowa dairy cows“Earlier today (Iowa Secretary of Agriculture Mike Naig) informed me about the plan to test dairy cows in areas where cases of HPAI have been confirmed in poultry flocks,” Iowa Gov. Kim Reynolds said in a statement. “I appreciate his and the department’s proactive response. Because Iowa farmers produce 10 percent of the nation’s food supply, protecting the health of our livestock is one of our highest priorities.“Additionally, last week I sent a letter to Sec. Vilsack urging the USDA to prioritize and expedite the approval process for animal vaccines designed to combat diseases threatening the agriculture industry. I will continue to advocate for these vaccines to help prevent and control future disease outbreaks.” The U.S. Centers for Disease Control and Prevention says humans can contract the virus by consuming infected animal products, such as cow’s milk. However, Jardon says the milk you buy at the grocery store is safe to drink.”Pasteurization kills this virus. So the milk is safe off the shelf in every grocery store,” said Jardon. So far this year, more than two million birds in two Iowa counties have been destroyed because of the virus.» Download the free KCCI app to get updates on the go: Apple | Google PlayGet the latest headlines from KCCIMan in Mexico dies with one form of bird fluA 59-year-old man in Mexico who had been bedridden because of chronic health problems developed a fever, shortness of breath and diarrhea in April. He died a week later, and the World Health Organization this week reported it, according to the Associated Press.The WHO said it was the first time that version of bird flu — H5N2 — had been seen in a person.A different version of bird flu — H5N1 — has been infecting poultry flocks over the last several years, leading to millions of birds being culled. It also has been spreading among all different kinds of animals around the world.How dangerous is H5N2? Over the years, H5N2 has teetered between being considered a mild threat to birds and a severe threat, but it hasn’t been considered much of a human threat at all.A decade ago, researchers used mice and ferrets to study the strain afflicting U.S. poultry at the time, and concluded it was less likely to spread and less lethal than H5N1. Officials also said there was no evidence it was spreading among people.Rare cases of animal infections are reported each year, so it’s not unexpected that a person was diagnosed with H5N2.”If you’re a glass half full kind of person, you’d say, ‘This is the system doing exactly what it’s supposed to do: detecting and documenting these rare human infections, where years ago we were stumbling in the dark,’” said Matthew Ferrari, director of Penn State’s Center for Infectious Disease Dynamics.Indeed, Mexico Health Secretary Jorge Alcocer said kidney and respiratory failure — not the virus — actually caused the man’s death.Some experts said it is noteworthy that it’s not known how he caught the man caught H5N2.“The fact there was no reported contact (with an infected bird) does raise the possibility that he was infected by someone else who visited him, but it’s premature to jump to those conclusions,” said Richard Webby, a flu researcher at St. Jude Children’s Research Hospital in Memphis.What about other types of bird flu? At this point, H5N2 is still considered a minor threat compared to some of the other kinds of bird flu out there. Most human illnesses have been attributed to H7N9, H5N6 and H5N1 bird flu viruses.From early 2013 through October 2017, five outbreaks of H7N9 were blamed for killing more than 600 people in China. And at least 18 people in China died during an outbreak of H5N6 in 2021, according to the U.S. Centers for Disease Control and Prevention.H5N1 was first identified in 1959, but didn’t really began to worry health officials until a Hong Kong outbreak in 1997 that involved severe human illnesses and deaths.H5N1 cases have continued since then, the vast majority of them involving direct contact between people and infected animals. Globally, more than 460 human deaths have been identified since 2003, according to WHO statistics that suggest it can kill as many as half of the people reported to be infected.Like other viruses, H5N1 as evolved over time, spawning newer versions of itself. In the last few years, the predominant version of the virus has spread quickly among a wide range of animals, but counts of human fatalities have slowed.Information from the Associated Press was used in this article.

Source link