Canada has identified a first human case of avian flu. The patient, a teenager, tested positive, the authorities reported on Saturday, November 9. He is being treated in a children's hospital for avian flu caused by the H5 strain virus, said the Ministry of Health of British Columbia, a western Canadian province.
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The origin of the contagion and the teenager's contacts remain to be determined. “We are conducting a thorough investigation to fully understand the source of exposure (to the virus) here” in British Columbia, said local public health officer Bonnie Henry.
Experts worried about resurgence of virus in mammals
More “this is a rare event”, she confirmed. Avian flu is in fact most often spotted among populations of wild birds or poultry. It was recently identified among cows, victims of an epidemic this year in the United States, and, at the end of October, in a pig – which was also a first for Canada.
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And while human cases remain sporadic, experts are concerned about the growing number of infected mammals. They fear that ultimately, high circulation will facilitate a mutation of the virus which would allow it to pass from one human to another.
In September, a person from the US state of Missouri tested positive for bird flu, with no known contact with an infected animal. An unprecedented fact in this country. A case was also reported in June in Mexico.
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