Unseen Bird Flu Strain Claims First Human Life, WHO Confirms — Source Of Virus Remains Unknown

The World Health Organization has confirmed the first human death from a previously unseen strain of bird flu, H5N2, in Mexico.

What Happened: The WHO announced on Thursday that a man in Mexico fell victim to a new strain of bird flu, H5N2. This strain is distinct from the H5N1 strain, which has caused an outbreak among U.S. livestock and infected three dairy farm workers, reported The Hill.

The WHO maintains that the current risk of the virus to the general population remains low. The victim, a 59-year-old man from the State of Mexico, developed symptoms on April 17 and was hospitalized on April 24, the same day he died. His symptoms included fever, shortness of breath, diarrhea, nausea, and general malaise.

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The man had multiple underlying medical conditions and had been bedridden for three weeks before the onset of acute symptoms. He died due to complications of his condition. The WHO stated that he had no prior exposure to poultry or other animals, and the source of the virus remains unknown.

While Mexico has reported other H5N2 cases among its poultry, the WHO has not yet established a connection to this human case.

Why It Matters: This development comes in the wake of a recent report of a third human case of H5 bird flu in the U.S. tied to an ongoing outbreak in cattle.

As per a Benzinga article, a farm worker in Michigan, who was in close contact with infected cows, was detected with the virus. The farm involved was different from the one where an earlier human case was detected last week.

Photo Courtesy: Skorzewiak on Shutterstock.com

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This story was generated using Benzinga Neuro and edited by Shivdeep Dhaliwal