Mexico reports first human death from H5N1 bird flu

MEXICO CITY, April 9:  A three-year-old girl in western Mexico died after contracting avian influenza A (H5N1), becoming the country’s first fatal human case of the disease, health authorities said. The deceased patient tested positive on April 1 and died at 1:35 a.m. local time (0735 GMT) on Tuesday due to respiratory complications caused by the infection. Local authorities traced the patient’s contacts and no additional human cases have been identified, Xinhua news agency reported. The bird flu is a viral disease that affects birds, mammals and occasionally humans, the ministry said. Globally, 464 fatal human cases of avian influenza A (H5N1) virus have been reported in 24 countries over the past two decades, according to the WHO. A (H5N1) is one of several influenza viruses that causes a highly infectious respiratory disease in birds called avian influenza (or “bird flu”). Infections in mammals, including humans, have also been documented. H5N1 influenza virus infection can cause a range of diseases in humans, from mild to severe and in some cases, it can even be fatal. Symptoms reported have primarily been respiratory, but conjunctivitis and other non-respiratory symptoms have also been reported. There have also been a few detections of A(H5N1) virus in persons who were exposed to infected animals or their environments but who did not show any symptoms. Since 2022, there have been increasing reports of deadly outbreaks among mammals also caused by influenza A(H5) – including influenza A(H5N1) – viruses. There are likely to be more outbreaks that have not been detected or reported. Both land and sea mammals have been affected, including outbreaks in farmed fur animals, seals, sea lions, and detections in other wild and domestic animals such as foxes, bears, otters, raccoons, cats, dogs, cows, goats and others. Almost all cases of H5N1 virus infection in people have been associated with close contact with infected live or dead birds, or H5N1-contaminated environments, for example live bird markets. There have been some instances of spread from infected mammals to humans as well. While there may have been some cases that were not detected, the virus does not seem to easily infect humans or spread from person to person, based on the current knowledge and understanding. (IANS)