Seven poultry farm workers who were working at a poultry plant in the southern part of Russia got contacted with the H5N8 flu after the disease made the birds infected with the flu in December 2020.
The country has reported the world’s first case of a strain of bird flu virus that ended up infecting humans through birds. Anna Popova, Who is the head of consumer health of the Russian Federal Service Rospotrebnadzor said that The outbreak of the H5N8 strain has been reported to the World Health Organization.
What is exactly the H5N8 infection?
The strain is a subtype of the influenza A virus that causes flu-like symptoms and has chances of infecting wild birds and poultry. The flu is deadly for the life of birds.
Which parts of the world have been affected by the H5N8 Strain?
Outbreaks of the H5N8 virus were reported in parts of Russia, Europe, China, the Middle East, and North Africa in recent months but only in the poultry. Other Bird Flus such as H5N1, H7N9, and H9N2 is also known to infect humans.
The H5N8 virus was reported in two districts in the state of Kerala which are Alapuzha and Kottayam, in the Alapuzha district in the month of January this year.
How did the H5N8 Flu infect the workers?
The Russian Medical and health organization said that the reported cases took place because the workers were exposed to bird flocks. One of the health officials said that they were asymptomatic and no human to human contact was reported.
Is eating poultry safe due to the global Bird Flu Outbreak?
The human bird flu infections have been associated due to direct contact with infected live or dead poultry, if the poultry meat is properly cooked food then it is considered to be absolutely safe, The Russian news website Reuters reported.
What is the update for the Vaccination for H5N8?
Russian scientists have now started working on developing vaccination and trials for the H5N8 Flu. The labs are developing test kits to detect infection in humans.
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