Washington State Records First-Ever Human Case of H5N5 Bird Flu Variant as Older Patient Dies
A resident of Washington State has died after contracting a rare strain of bird flu previously detected only in animals, state health officials announced marking the second bird flu–related death in the United States this year.
The patient, described as an older adult with underlying health conditions, had been hospitalised since early this month, according to the Washington State Department of Health.
Tests conducted by the University of Washington confirmed the patient was infected with the H5N5 avian influenza strain a variant never before recorded in a human anywhere in the world. The US Centres for Disease Control and Prevention later validated the result.
Despite the unprecedented case, health authorities emphasised that the risk to the general public remains low.
“No other people involved have tested positive for avian influenza, and there is no evidence of human-to-human transmission of this virus,” the department said.
Officials believe the patient was exposed through contact with a backyard flock of mixed domestic birds kept on their property.
The CDC reports that more than 70 human cases of bird flu have been recorded in the US this year. A separate death was reported in January when an individual in Louisiana contracted the H5N1 strain.
Globally, the World Health Organisation has documented more than 1,000 human cases of avian influenza across 25 countries since 2003, spanning multiple strains of the virus.