An outbreak has killed tens of millions of birds in recent years.
Now the H5N1 virus has spread among mammals – which can have catastrophic consequences for humans, according to the WHO.
– I think this is still a huge problem, says Jeremy Farrar, Chief Scientist at the UN Health Organization.
What previously meant a direct danger to birds has taken a step closer to humans. This is what the World Health Organization, WHO, warns about.
H5N1, also called highly pathogenic avian influenza virus, has been circulating among wild birds and also some mammals. Now cows and goats have joined the list of animals that have been infected, according to The Guardian.
A discovery that worries the WHO – as it was previously believed that they had not been exposed to the virus.
– The big concern is of course that the virus, which has spread among ducks and chickens and now also more and more mammals, develops the ability to infect people and then also the ability to spread between people, says Jeremy Farrar, chief scientist at the UN’s health organization in a statement.
Over 50 percent mortality
There is currently no evidence that the virus can pass from person to person. However, just under 900 people have fallen ill after contact with infected animals since 2003, writes The Guardian.
There, the mortality rate has proven to be “extraordinarily high” at over 50 percent, according to the WHO.
Jeremy Farrar says that the high mortality rate is due to the fact that humans have no natural immunity to the virus.
Person infected in Texas
American authorities confirmed in early April that one person had contracted bird flu, which was linked to infected dairy cows.
The WHO points out that the case in Texas highlights an increased risk of infection and adds that viruses are constantly looking for new victims.
– Therefore, it is very important to understand how many infections in humans occur, because that is where the adaptation of the virus will take place, says Jeremy Farrar.
– It’s a tragic thing to say, but if I get infected with H5N1 and die, then it’s over. If I go around the community and spread it to someone else, the cycle starts.