What you should know about bird flu in the UK - and its impact on humans

What you should know about bird flu in the UK - and its impact on humans
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What you should know about bird flu in the UK - and its impact on humans
Published: Feb, 10 2025 10:05

Summary at a Glance

What you should know about bird flu in the UK - and its impact on humans The UK has been declared an Avian Influenza Prevention Zone (AIPZ) - and bird "gatherings" have been banned in England and Wales in response to rising cases of bird flu.

Avian flu (more commonly known as bird flu) is an influenza virus most common in wild birds and poultry.

Although there has only been one human case, the government has ordered five million doses of a bird flu vaccine to prevent further spread between humans.

Human-to-human transmission has not happened in the UK or Europe since bird flu first emerged in 1997, but experts warn each infection increases the risk of the virus adapting to human hosts - and causing a pandemic.

By 2021 and 2022 sea birds along the UK coastline were dying - and eventually the virus spread to non-wild birds - including poultry.

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