Australia has recorded its first ever human case of bird flu, after H5N1 avian influenza was detected in a child travelling home to Victoria.
The Victorian Department of Health confirmed the child returning to the country became unwell in March and subsequently tested positive to the avian influenza, also known as bird flu.
“The child experienced a severe infection but is no longer unwell and has made a full recovery,” the spokesperson said.
“Contact tracing has not identified any further cases of avian influenza connected to this case.”
The department reassured the community that the chances of additional human cases was “very low”.
“Avian influenza does not easily spread between people,” the spokesperson said.
Case not linked to egg farm outbreak
Avian influenza is an infectious viral disease of birds that is not commonly detected in humans.
There are many strains of avian influenza and the Department of Health said “most of them don’t infect humans”.
“Some subtypes, including H5N1, are more likely to cause disease and death in poultry,” a spokesperson said.
There is a current out break of this strain in other parts of the world including in dairy cows in the United States of America.
One dairy worker in America recently tested positive to the virus.
It comes as hundreds of thousands of chickens at an egg farm in Victoria were being euthanased after the disease was detected there.
The property near Meredith, in the state’s west, is in quarantine.
The Department of Health said the Victorian child has no links to the egg farm outbreak.
Bird flu in poulty was last detected in Australia in 2020.
Posted , updated
