Category: Avian Influenza
US to spend $10 million to curb bird flu in farm workers, including vaccine push
Reuters The U.S. Centers for Disease Control and Prevention said on Tuesday it plans to spend $10 million to curb farm worker bird flu infections, including $5 million for seasonal flu vaccines, as part of its efforts to avoid further spread and mutation of the virus. The ongoing outbreak of bird flu has infected poultry flocks in […]
Jul 31, 2024
The latest bird flu concern: county fairs
Axios The quintessential summer pastime of going to the county fair could carry some risk this year with the threat of bird flu hanging over livestock exhibits and throngs of visitors, experts say. Why it matters: The mingling of animals, people and equipment at 4-H competitions, milking demonstrations and petting farms creates the conditions for potential transmission to […]
Jul 31, 2024
Is New York Ready for Bird Flu?
NYT The state has stockpiled only one drug, which dates to the ’90s, to fight the disease if it spreads to the human population. One infectious disease expert says it could be an Achilles’ heel someday: New York’s plan for fighting bird flu, if it begins spreading among people, largely depends on one drug developed […]
Jul 31, 2024
CDC will offer seasonal flu shots to farmworkers to lower bird flu risk
STAT The Centers for Disease Control and Prevention announced Tuesday that it is funding a $5 million program to vaccinate livestock industry workers against seasonal flu in a bid to reduce the pandemic risk posed by the ongoing H5N1 bird flu outbreak in cattle. The voluntary program, which will be administered by state and local public health […]
Jul 30, 2024
New York’s Preparations for a Bird Flu Pandemic Rely on a Single Drug
NYT New York’s plan for confronting bird flu if it begins spreading among people relies heavily on a vast stockpile of flu treatment medicine. But experts worry the stockpile is missing a key tool. New York has only one type of flu antiviral drug, Tamiflu, which might prove less effective than hoped against a pandemic […]
Jul 30, 2024
Mortality Due to H5N1 Human Infections Could Decrease by Switching Receptor
Precision Vaccinations Avian influenza mortality might be due to a H5N1 virus pneumonia. The Lancet Infectious Disease recently published a Correspondence offering insights regarding the current influenza A(H5N1) outbreak in dairy cattle and poultry, raising concerns about increased risk for sustained human-to-human transmission. On July 24, 2024, these researchers wrote that avian influenza viruses’ increasing host […]
Jul 30, 2024
The Bird Flu Threat Keeps Growing
Wired Human cases keep ticking up, are very likely to be underreported, and offer the virus the opportunity to learn how to spread from person to person. Ongoing Outbreaks of avian influenza have decimated poultry flocks and wild birds across the United States and worldwide. The virus, known as H5N1, is also increasingly adapting to mammals […]
Jul 30, 2024
What to Know About Bird Flu and Fears of a New Pandemic
Bloomberg For influenza viruses, imperfection is a strength. They constantly mutate, producing new strains that challenge immune systems primed to fight earlier varieties. That’s what makes flu a life-long threat to humans and the animal species — mainly birds — that are vulnerable to it. Since 2020, a strain of highly pathogenic avian influenza called […]
Jul 24, 2024
Scientists Show How Bird Flu Spreads Between Mammals — As H5N1 Pandemic Fears Grow
Forbes Scientists have proven how cows have spread H5N1 bird flu across the country and infected other cows, wild birds and even mammals like cats and raccoons, according to research published in Nature Wednesday, findings that suggest it may be capable of spreading effectively between people in the future as outbreaks on poultry and dairy farms spark […]
Jul 24, 2024
Bird flu that infected 6 Colorado poultry workers is closely related to the virus in cows
Public health experts are closely watching Colorado after five workers at an H5N1-infected egg farm tested positive. The virus infecting these workers is related to a strain found in cattle.
Jul 23, 2024
