United States: Two states that had reported earlier avian flu infection in dairy cattle and commercial poultry reported higher probable H5 avian flu infection among farm workers following the last few days, with four of the infections reported in California and three in Washington.
Elsewhere, federal authorities identified further outbreaks in dairy cows and poultry, while Los Angeles County, California, has confirmed positive samples of H5 in wastewater for the first time.
More infection cases identified
The California Department of Public Health (CDPH) added four new cases, bringing the total to 20; seventeen of those cases have been confirmed by the CDC, cidrap.umn.edu reported.
The CDPH also identified one other likely case in a dairy employee with a specimen that was positive in another local laboratory that fulfilled probable case criteria but had a negative confirmation CDC test.
The Washington State Department of Health on November 1 reported three other probable human cases in people who have been exposed to sick poultry, bringing the state total to 12, of which nine have been confirmed by the CDC.
The patients traveled while ill to Oregon, which recently identified an avian case of the virus, at a backyard farm that also recently reported a pig positive, the first known case in US swine.
What more have the officials reported?
The Oregon Health Authority posted an October 31 statement saying the patients were being overseen by health officials in the state when they were present in Oregon.
All had contact with sick poultry in Washington. The agency stated that the three individuals had gone back to Washington for observation for the next ten days after the presumably last contact with infected birds.
The CDC’s total number of confirmed human cases for this year up to November 1 includes 41 cases in 6 states with jurisdiction pending for one case related to a patient exposed to poultry, cidrap.umn.edu reported.
More cases in US poultry and dairy farms
As per the US Department of Agriculture (USDA) and Animal and Plant Health Inspection Service (APHIS), thirty-eight H5N1 outbreaks have been reported in dairy cattle, out of which thirty are in California and eight in Utah.
Moreover, the virus has now been confirmed in 442 herds in fifteen states.