H10N3 Bird flu
On 28th April 2021, a 41 year old man was hospitalized in an Intensive Care Unit (ICU) and on 28th May 2021 he was diagnosed with H10N3 strain of bird flu in Jiangsu Province of China. This is the first case where a human being was infected with H10N3 Bird flu and no other case was reported. According to the China’s National Health Commission, this was the case of accidental cross species transmission.
What is Bird flu?
H10N3 is a type of bird flu and according to Centers for Disease Control and Prevention (CDC), this illness is common in wild aquatic birds all over the world and can infect the domestic poultry and other bird and animal species. CDC also said that they don’t normally infect humans but crossover infections can happen. The infected birds shed avian flu in their saliva, mucus and poop. Humans can get infected if close contact with the infected birds is there and enough virus gets into their eyes, nose or mouth or is inhaled from infected droplets.
Symptoms include: Pink eye, fever, cough, sore throat, muscle ache, nausea, pain in stomach, diarrhea, vomiting, shortness of breath, difficulty breathing, Pneumonia, altered mental status and seizures.
According to WHO, there is no sign of transmission between humans. Also there is no information about the mutations of this virus that could be used to determine whether transmission among humans can occur. Among the bird population H10N3 has been detected in the bird markets since 2002 and is a low pathogenicity which means it causes few signs of illness in the host.
Image sourse: The poultry site
Bird flu is just treated the same way as any ordinary flu that is by using an antiviral medication like oseltamivir (Tamiflu), peramivir, or zanamivir.
As soon as the news of bird flu in human being broke out people started comparing it with COVID 19 virus but there is no point to worry at this moment and the people in public health are constantly monitoring the transmission among humans which does not seem to happen
In case of bird flu, there is very little evidence that bird flu can spread to healthy individuals through eggs or poultry products therefore these products can be consumed as usual without any fear of acquiring infection with the avian flu virus. It is necessary to follow good hygienic and cooking practices as the virus is destroyed at a temperature of 70oC for 30 minutes. Also it is necessary to wash hands with soap after dealing with eggs or poultry products. Whenever any meat is exposed to heat, all germs, pathogens and viruses are killed. Therefore, once properly cooked the food is safe to consume.
Article by,
Divyanka
BioPsych Bioscience
Source of information:
1) https://www.prevention.com/health/a36593742/what-is-h10n3-bird-flu/
2) https://www.livemint.com/science/health/what-are-the-risks-as-china-reports-world-s-firsthuman-case-of-h10n3-bird-flu-11622720537116.html
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