The News
The US reported its first known human death from H5N1 bird flu on Monday. The patient was hospitalized in Louisiana last month.
A total of 66 people have tested positive for H5N1 in the US, usually with mild symptoms: The disease has been spreading among US dairy cows, although the dead victim apparently contracted the disease directly from birds.
The concern is that the virus mutates to spread between humans and, in a worst-case scenario, starts a new pandemic. But Louisiana authorities found no evidence of person-to-person transmission, and said the risk to the public remained low. Genetic samples collected from the now-deceased patient, however, indicated several changes that may improve the virus’ ability to bind to cells in human airways.
