In Missouri, a person with no reported contact with animals was confirmed to be infected with H5 avian influenza. The Missouri Department of Health and Senior Services (MDHSS) made the announcement late Friday..
MDHSS reported that the individual, who had underlying health conditions, was hospitalized on Aug. 22 and tested positive for the Influenza A virus. Further testing at the state public health laboratory determined the Influenza A virus was the H5 type of avian influenza. The Centers for Disease Control and Prevention is currently conducting further testing to confirm this finding and determine if it is the H5N1 type, which is currently causing widespread infections among dairy cows in the United States.
It is unclear whether the individual was hospitalized due to an avian influenza infection or if the infection was discovered by chance. The individual has since recovered and been released from hospital. MDHSS said in a statement that no other information about the patient would be released to protect the individual’s privacy.
The report marks the 15th case of H5 avian influenza in the country since 2022. But what makes this case stand out is that the man did not report any contact with animals, sparking rapid online fears. All 14 previous cases have occurred in farm workers who had contact with dairy cows or poultry known to be infected with H5N1.
These findings in unexposed people suggest that the H5N1 virus may be spreading undetected from person to person or through undetected animal sources.
But while the case has raised concerns, some infectious disease experts are cautious about sounding the alarm without more data on the case and potential transmission.
“[U]Until such data is collected and analyzed, my level of caution is only slightly increased.” Caitlin Rivers“We’re at a critical juncture in the pandemic,” the senior fellow at the Johns Hopkins Center for Health Security and founding associate director of the CDC’s Center for Forecasting and Spread Analysis said online.
“It is encouraging that this case was detected through existing surveillance systems, which increases the likelihood of identifying additional cases in the future,” she added. “Federal, state and local health officials responded to the H5 influenza situation by continuing influenza surveillance over the summer, which was undoubtedly the right move.”
But Rivers, like many of his colleagues, has long been concerned about the potential for H5N1 to jump to humans and cause a pandemic.
To date, H5N1 is known to have been transmitted 197 herds in 14 statesNo infected flocks have been reported in Missouri, Infected poultry farm.
