First human case of bird flu confirmed in England after nationwide outbreak
First human case of bird flu confirmed in England after nationwide outbreak
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A human case of bird flu has been confirmed in England. The UK Health Security Agency said the person in the West Midlands region caught avian influenza on a farm where “they had close and prolonged contact with a large number of infected birds”. It is the first human case since May 2023 when a poultry culler caught it from infected birds and comes at a time of a national outbreak among the animals. The individual concerned is now in isolation and contact tracing is underway.
Andrew Gwynne, Minister for Public Health and Prevention, said: “The safety of the public is paramount, and we are monitoring this situation closely. The risk of wider or onward transmission is very low, however the UK remains prepared and ready to respond to any current and future health threats. We recently added the H5 vaccine, which protects against avian influenza, to our stockpile as part of our preparedness plans.”.
There has been no demonstrated human-to-human transmission despite extensive recent surveillance of the circulating A(H5N1). The case was detected after the Animal and Plant Health Agency (APHA) identified an outbreak of avian influenza in a flock of birds. The UKHSA then carried out routine monitoring on people who had been in close contact with the infected birds.
The individual infected is described as “currently well” and has been admitted to a High Consequence Infectious Disease (HCID) unit. Their close contacts have all been given antiviral treatment to reduce the chance that any virus they have been exposed to will be able to cause infection.
