Alarm has been sounded by experts regarding the potential emergence of a bird flu pandemic, cautioning that its impact could surpass that of Covid by a significant margin, potentially leading to fatalities in up to half of those affected.
These concerns were articulated during a recent briefing where researchers deliberated on the H5N1 strain of bird flu. They expressed unease regarding the virus possibly nearing a critical threshold capable of triggering a global pandemic, as reported by the UK-based tabloid Daily Mail.
Dr. Suresh Kuchipudi, a leading bird flu researcher in Pittsburgh, highlighted during the briefing that H5N1 possesses the capability to cause a pandemic, given its ability to infect various mammalian hosts, including humans. He emphasized that “we are getting dangerously close to this virus potentially causing a pandemic.”
John Fulton, a pharmaceutical industry consultant and founder of Canada-based BioNiagara, echoed these concerns, stressing the severity of a potential H5N1 pandemic and suggesting it could be considerably deadlier than Covid-19.
The latest developments follow reports of outbreaks of avian flu in a poultry facility in Michigan and an egg producer in Texas, USA. Additionally, concerns have risen with reports of infected dairy cows and the first documented case of human infection from a mammal.
The US Centers for Disease Control and Prevention (CDC) confirmed an H5N1 infection in a dairy farm worker in Texas, prompting heightened vigilance from the White House.
This marks the first known instance of a person contracting bird flu from dairy cattle, differing from a previous case in Colorado in 2022, where an individual tested positive for bird flu after direct exposure to poultry.
The virus has spread swiftly among dairy herds in five states across the country — Idaho, Kansas, Michigan, New Mexico, and Texas — impacting millions of animals.
Despite reassurances from US health officials regarding the low risk to the public, mounting concern persists, particularly with news of outbreaks reported by the largest producer of fresh eggs in the US.
H5N1, a subtype of avian influenza A, is highly pathogenic, causing severe and often fatal illness in poultry. While primarily affecting birds, it can also infect wild birds and occasionally mammals, including humans. The disease can be fatal in non-bird species, although some cases may exhibit mild symptoms or remain asymptomatic.
First detected in birds in China in 1996, H5N1 garnered attention after an outbreak in Hong Kong a year later, resulting in human cases and fatalities arising from direct bird-to-human transmission.
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