UK Reports Its First Human Case Of Bird Flu

While the United States is still battling bird flu outbreak, amid many more healthcare development, the United Kingdom reported its first confirmed human case of bird flu in three years. This is reported in a poultry worker from the West Midlands. The person is said to have contracted the A (H5N1) virus, which makes it a rare instance of bird-to-human transmission in the UK, reported the UK Health Security Agency (UKHSA).

As per the UKHSA, the person acquired the infection on a farm where "they had close and prolonged contact with a large number of infected birds. The risk to the wider public continues to be very low."

The outbreak of A (H5N1) virus in birds was detected by the Animal and Plant Health Agency (APHA), and the patient is reported to be in good health, as of now. The patient is also receiving treatment in a High Consequence Infectious Disease (HCID) unit.

As per the genomic analysis, the birds that infected in the UK carried the D1.2 genotype, a strain which is different from that found in the United States and Canada, where severe human cases were linked to the D1.1 genotype.

Human Case of Bird Flu

As per the BBC, there have been only seven cases of human bird flu infections in Europe and the UK since 2021, which has been documented. However, no evidence of human-to-human transmission has been found. The last case was reported in the UK in January 2022, when a person in England contracted the virus from domestic flocks of ducks.

ALSO READ: Is There A Difference Between Zoonotic, Non-Zoonotic And Reverse Zoonotic Diseases

Bird Flu In UK

In November 2024, the US Department of Agriculture reported the presence of the D1.2 genotype in pigs and poultry on backyard farm in Oregon. The US Centers for Disease Control and Prevention (CDC) also expressed concerns about the virus's ability to adapt in pigs. Since then, the UK has also launched surveillance to monitor individuals who had close contact with either the infected person, though no human-to-human transmission has been detected; or was closely associated with farm and poultry.

"We are seeing a growing number of avian flu cases in birds on both commercial farms and in backyard flocks across the country. Implementing scrupulous biosecurity measures will help protect the health and welfare of your birds from the threat of avian influenza and other diseases," said UK Chief Veterinary Officer Christine Middlemiss.

Earlier this month, the UK had ordered 5 million vaccines against bird flu, which is also dubbed as "one mutation from being the next COVID". The stocking of vaccine has been done amid the growing concerns that the H5N1 strain of avian influenza could actually trigger the next global health crisis. This has become a cause of concerns after California became the latest to declare an emergency over infected cattle herds, and Louisiana reported its first "severe" human case of bird flu.

The UKHSA has rated bird flu threat at level 4, which means sustained outbreaks in mammals and increasing human cases from animal contact. In terms of numbers, since 2003, there have been 939 human cases of bird flu globally, with 464 deaths recorded. All of them were directly caught from birds or animals. Human to human contact for bird flu is still yet to be studied.