US identifies 65-year-old in Louisiana as first severe case of bird flu
Al JazeeraHealth officials say the 65-year-old was hospitalised after contact with an infected flock of back-yard birds. A 65-year-old in the southern state of Louisiana has been hospitalised in critical condition as the result of the bird flu, becoming the first severe case reported in the United States. “CDC confirms first severe case of H5N1 Bird Flu in the US. “This case does not change CDC’s overall assessment of the immediate risk to the public’s health from H5N1 bird flu, which remains low.” Demetre Daskalakis, director of CDC’s National Center for Immunization and Respiratory Diseases, also told reporters that the Louisiana case was the first to be linked to a noncommercial flock. As of Wednesday, the CDC has tallied 61 confirmed human cases of bird flu in the US, with most of them connected to exposure to sick poultry or dairy cows.