Avian Flu: China Reports First Human Case of H3N8 Bird Flu; Could it be Another Outbreak?

H3N8 has been spreading since 2002 when it first appeared in North American waterfowl. It was previously discovered in horses, dogs, and seals, but not in humans. On Tuesday, the National Health Commission of China announced that a four-year-old kid from the central Henan region has tested positive for the strain after being admitted to the hospital with a fever and other symptoms earlier in the month.

Is It Contagious?

According to the NHC, the boy's parents raised chickens at home and resided in a region inhabited by wild ducks. According to the commission, the young boy was determined to have been infected by the birds directly however, the H3N8 strain found lacked the ability to infect humans.

As per the report, testing of the boy's close human connections revealed no anomalies whatsoever. The NHC described the child's case as a "one-off cross-species transmission with a low level of risk of large-scale transmission."

Nonetheless, it advised the public to avoid dead or sick birds and seek emergency medical attention if they experience fever or breathing difficulties.

What is Bird Flu/Avian Influenza?

Avian influenza is a disease that primarily affects wild birds and poultry. Human-to-human transmission is extremely uncommon. According to the US Centers for Disease Control and Prevention, the H5N1 and H7N9 bird flu viruses, which were discovered in 1997 and 2013, respectively, have been responsible for the majority of human cases of avian influenza.

According to the World Health Organization, human infections of zoonotic, or animal-borne, influenzas are mainly obtained via exposure to infected or contaminated environments but do not result in the efficient transmission of these viruses between people.

H3N8 is responsible for the deaths of over 160 seals off the northeast coast of the USA in 2012 when it caused the animals to contract fatal pneumonia.