Four Colorado poultry workers diagnosed with bird flu
Four poultry workers in Colorado have been infected with avian flu, health officials confirmed Sunday.
The new cases bring the total number of cases in the U.S. to nine since the first case was identified at a Colorado poultry farm in 2022. Eight of the nine cases were reported this year.
Their symptoms were relatively mild, consisting of red, inflamed eyes, fever, chills, cough, sore throat and runny nose — typical symptoms of a respiratory infection. None were hospitalized, officials said. Other cases in the U.S. also had mild illness.
A fifth person with symptoms is being tested but results are pending, officials said. State health officials said the workers were working on a farm in northeastern Colorado culling poultry. All had direct contact with infected birds.
The avian influenza virus has been spreading among mammals including dogs, cats, skunks, bears and even seals and dolphins in many countries since 2020. Earlier this year, the virus, known as H5N1, was detected in livestock in the United States and is now spreading among cattle in several states.
Health officials continue to insist the threat to the general public is low and the virus is not spreading from person to person, but they are keeping a close watch as earlier versions of the same virus have had deadly effects on people.
At the request of the state, the Centers for Disease Control and Prevention (CDC) has sent a nine-person team to Colorado to assist with the investigation, CDC officials said.
The cases earlier this year occurred among dairy workers in Michigan, Texas and Colorado.
Officials said the virus detected in the four latest cases is at least partially identical to a type found in earlier U.S. cases, but further genetic analysis is being conducted to confirm it is entirely identical.
As of Friday, the H5N1 virus had been confirmed on 152 dairy farms in 12 states, according to the U.S. Department of Agriculture. Hundreds of commercial chicken farms in more than 30 states have reported H5N1 or other types of avian flu.
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