Russia Reports First Case of Bird-to-Human Transmission of H5N8, a Subtype of the Influenza A Virus

At this point, humans are so desensitised to bad news that if we were told a huge asteroid was headed straight for Earth and would wipe out our entire species, we’d probably say oh and continue sipping our bubble tea.

We have the coronavirus to thank for this, of course.

Covid-19: You’re welcome. No one ever gives me credit for anything.

Thanks to the unpredictable nature of the pandemic, any piece of good news is inevitably followed by a chunkier piece of bad news.

Just two days ago, the government announced that residents here would be offered vaccinations from April.

That’s great!

Then one day later, this happened:

Russia Reports First Case of Bird-to-Human Transmission of H5N8, a Subtype of the Influenza A Virus

That’s right, just when we considering the possibility that we could defeat the coronavirus, another virus has popped up.

Russia recently recorded the first case of the H5N8 bird flu being transmitted to humans from birds, according to Reuters. 

Before this case, outbreaks of the H5N8 strain had been reported in Russia, Europe, China, the Middle East, and North Africa, but was only found in poultry.

Now, it has somehow made its way to a human. Seven humans, to be precise.

Seven workers at a poultry plant in the southern part of the country had been infected following an outbreak there in December.

Fortunately, all seven are now feeling well.

Anna Popova, head of consumer health watchdog Rospotrebnadzor, said adequate measures had been taken.

The infections have also been reported to the World Health Organization (WHO).

There’s no need to slam the panic button though, as there’s been no evidence of transmission between humans yet.

The key word here, of course, is yet.

Mass Bird Culling

Typically, when bird flu outbreaks are detected at poultry plants, owners slaughter the birds to prevent the virus from spreading further.

They are also trying to avoid trade restrictions from other countries.

This is what happened in the Netherlands last year, when the Dutch Ministry of Agriculture ordered the culling of 200,000 chickens after discovering a highly pathogenic bird flu at a farm there.

Britain too, detected cases of bird flu in north-west England. To prevent further spread, they ordered a cull of 13,000 birds.

Cooked Food is Safe

According to NParks, avian influenza viruses do not usually infect humans.

Most humans who get infected with these viruses have been in direct contact with infected live or dead poultry, or with their secretions and faeces.

The good news is that properly cooked food and eggs are believed to be safe.

So, don’t worry, no one is going to take your fried chicken away from you.

Featured Image: Musashi akira / Shutterstock.com