US CDC confirms H5N1 bird flu in California child

(Reuters) – The U.S. Centers for Disease Control and Prevention confirmed on Friday the country’s first case of H5N1 bird flu infection in a child who had mild symptoms and is recovering from the illness.

The California Department of Public Health reported the case on Tuesday, but said there was no evidence of human-to-human transmission of the virus. The child’s family members tested negative.

The CDC said there is currently no evidence of person-to-person spread of H5N1 bird flu from this child to others, but said it will continue contact tracing.

The agency said the child received flu antivirals and low levels of viral material were found in the initial specimen.

A follow-up test of the child a few days later was negative for bird flu, but positive for other common respiratory viruses, it added.

So far, there has been no person-to-person spread associated with any of the H5N1 bird flu cases reported in the United States, the CDC said. The agency maintained that the risk to the general public remains low.

Including this child’s case, 55 human cases of H5 bird flu have been reported this year in the country, with 29 in California, according to the CDC.

Most cases of bird flu in the US have occurred among farm workers in contact with poultry or cows that have been infected with the virus.

Because bird flu viruses can mutate and gain the ability to spread easily between people, California public health officials have previously said they are closely monitoring animal and human infections.

The CDC and state departments have urged residents to avoid contact with sick or dead wild birds.

(Reporting by Bhanvi Satija in Bengaluru; Editing by Krishna Chandra Eluri)