First human case of H5 bird flu confirms in Colorado, US

The United States reported its first known case of H5 bird flu in a human with the virus appearing in a person in Colorado.

According to the Centers for Disease Control and Prevention (CDC) a person tested positive for avian influenza A(H5) virus and was involved in the culling of poultry suspected of having H5N1 bird flu. The instance, however, has no bearing on the CDC's estimate of human risk to the general population, which is considered minimal.

This is the world's second human instance linked to this particular category of H5 viruses. In December 2021, the first one was detected in Britain.

According to the CDC, the Colorado patient's sole symptom was fatigue  for a few days and he has now recovered.The patient was being treated under isolation and with the influenza antiviral drug oseltamivir.

Since the CDC began monitoring for disease among individuals exposed to the viruses in late 2021, H5N1 viruses have been discovered in US commercial and domestic birds in 29 states and wild birds in 34 states.

"The CDC has tracked the health of more than 2,500 people with exposure to H5N1 virus-infected birds and this is the only case that has been found to date. Other people involved in the culling operation in Colorado have tested negative for H5 virus infection, but they are being retested out of an abundance of caution," it said.