Category: Avian Influenza
How bird flu differs from seasonal flu − an infectious disease researcher explains
The Conversation The flu sickens millions of people in the U.S. every year, and the past year has been particularly tough. Although infections are trending downward, the Centers for Disease Control and Prevention has called the winter of 2024-2025 a “high severity” season with the highest hospitalization rate in 15 years. Since early 2024, a different kind of […]
Apr 16, 2025
Why cats are so vulnerable to H5N1 bird flu
STAT In 2024, as zoos were hit hard by H5N1 bird flu, big cats were particularly affected: tigers, lions, a cheetah, and a panther all died after being infected with the same virus that has caused egg prices to skyrocket. House cats are vulnerable to H5N1, too, as Meghan F. Davis, a veterinarian and epidemiologist with […]
Apr 16, 2025
H5N1: 70 Human Cases in the US as of April 2025
Contagion Live As of April 2025, the CDC has reported 70 confirmed and probable human cases of H5N1 avian influenza since the outbreak began in 2024 in the United States. The majority of these cases have been linked to exposure through commercial agricultural settings, with 41 individuals exposed through infected dairy herds and 24 associated with poultry […]
Apr 15, 2025
Avian flu in raw milk found to be broadly sensitive to heat
Cornell Chronicle In March 2024, when the first cases of highly pathogenic avian influenza were identified in dairy cows in Texas, Cornell researchers – led by Diego Diel, associate professor of virology in the College of Veterinary Medicine (CVM) – immediately began assessing how long the virus survived in the raw milk of infected cows. At the same […]
Apr 9, 2025
USDA to lose bird flu response employees, source says
Reuters Several U.S. Department of Agriculture employees who worked on the agency’s bird flu response will leave at the end of April, straining the federal capacity to monitor the spread of the virus, according to a source familiar with the situation. The USDA on April 1 gave employees seven days to decide whether to take financial incentives […]
Apr 9, 2025
H5N1 detections in US dairy cattle reach 1,000
CIDRAP The US Department of Agriculture (USDA) Animal and Plant Health Inspection Service (APHIS) today reported two more H5N1 avian flu detections in dairy herds, one in California and the other in Nevada, raising the nation’s total to 1,000 since March 2024. California has been the hardest-hit state, and though detections have dropped sharply, sporadic H5N1 […]
Apr 9, 2025
Mexico confirms country’s first human death from H5N1 bird flu
CBS News A 3-year-old girl in western Mexico has died after contracting bird flu in the country’s first confirmed human case of the virus, Mexican health authorities said Tuesday. Mexico’s Health Ministry said in a statement that the girl died at 1:35 a.m. local time due to respiratory complications resulting from the infection. Type A H5N1 influenza […]
Apr 8, 2025
The hunt for the next pandemic is on our shores
ABC News Australia Along the untamed coast of southern Victoria, where thyme rice-flower and coast daisy hustle for space and mud flats melt into aqua ocean, a team of birdwatchers is searching for an invisible enemy. For almost 45 years, Rosalind Jessop has tracked the health of communities of wild birds, gathering data on flock […]
Apr 2, 2025
Current Situation: Bird Flu in Dairy Cows
CDC A multistate outbreak of HPAI A(H5N1) bird flu in dairy cows was first reported on March 25, 2024. This is the first time that these bird flu viruses had been found in cows. In the United States, since 2022, USDA APHIS has reported HPAI A(H5N1) virus detections in more than 200 mammals. On April […]
Apr 2, 2025
Toddler Dies Of Bird Flu In Andhra Pradesh
NDTV The infant died on March 15, and the Pune-based National Institute of Virology (NIV) later confirmed that she had contracted bird flu after testing her sample. A two-year-old girl from Andhra Pradesh succumbed to bird flu more than a fortnight ago, an official said on Wednesday. The toddler died on March 15, and the […]
Apr 2, 2025