‘Bird flu symptoms’: Online searches surge after first serious case in US

Health officials Wednesday confirmed the first serious case of bird flu in the US, leading to a surge in online searches for symptoms of the virus.

There have been over 60 avian flu infections in people across the country since March. Almost all have caused mild illness.

google search symptoms of bird flu It jumped 500 percent on Wednesday, with the virus topping all trending “symptom” searches, according to search engine data.

“Symptoms of H5N1 bird flu may include fever, or feeling feverish and chills, and respiratory symptoms such as cough, sore throat, runny or stuffy nose, muscle or body aches, headaches and fatigue,” according to the epidemiologist of the CDC, Dr. Denisse Vega Ocasio. .

Anyone who has been exposed to bird flu and starts experiencing symptoms should contact their state or local health department or a community health clinic immediately, the CDC advises.

While cases of bird flu have been rampant among wild birds, poultry and dairy cows in the US, among other animalscases in the US have been mild, until a serious case was documented in Louisiana.

That case, which was also the first in the United States involving a backyard flock, involved a person over 65 with underlying medical problems who had been in contact with sick and dead birds. As of Wednesday, the individual was hospitalized in critical condition with severe respiratory symptoms, according to a Louisiana official.

CDC health officials reiterated Wednesday that H5N1 flu still primarily affects animals.

“No person-to-person transmission of H5 avian influenza has been detected,” the agency said in a press release. “This case does not change CDC’s overall assessment of the immediate public health risk of H5N1 avian influenza, which remains low.”

While the current risk remains low, government officials across the country are working to ensure it remains that way as they try to minimize the agricultural impact.

California declares state of emergency

In California, Gov. Gavin Newsom (D) declared a state of emergency as cases of the virus were detected in dairy cows on farms in Southern California. Earlier, the infection had been detected in the central valley of the state.

“This proclamation is a targeted action to ensure that government agencies have the resources and flexibility they need to respond quickly to this outbreak,” Newsom said in a statement.

The virus has been detected in 865 dairy herds in 16 states, with nearly 650 of them in California. Raw milk from infected cattlewas rememberedlate last month after the virus was found in samples sold in stores in California.

Los Angeles County health officials confirmed Wednesday death of two cats of bird flu infections after drinking the recalled raw milk.

Flu experts said the virus’ trajectory in people is unclear, but urged people who come into contact with sick or dead birds to take precautions, including wearing respiratory and eye protection and gloves when handling poultry .

“We may see more cases of severe disease in the US as cases appear to be more common,” said Angela Rasmussen, a virus expert at the University of Saskatchewan in Canada.

The Associated Press contributed to this report.

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