Mexican child infected with H5N1 bird flu dies from respiratory complications
A 3-year-old girl in Mexico died this month after getting infected with H5N1 bird flu, according to a report issued by the World Health Organization this week.
Authorities say the strain of bird flu is one that has been circulating in wild birds throughout North America, known as D1.1. It is the same strain implicated in the death of a person in Louisiana earlier this year, and in the case of a 13-year-old Canadian who was placed on life-support for several weeks before recovering.
Two others, a person in Wyoming and a poultry worker in Ohio, were also reported to have severe disease after exposure to this strain of the virus.
The strain has been detected in dairy herds from Nevada and Arizona.
'The case in Mexico is another great reminder of how dangerous H5 viruses can be,' said Richard Webby, an infectious disease expert at St. Jude Children's Research Hospital in Memphis, Tenn.
The D1.1 strain is widespread in the U.S. and Canada, but until this week's WHO report it was unclear how far south the strain had traveled, he said.
'It has been a very active virus to date,' he said, and 'further spread will undoubtedly lead to more infections, both in birds and humans. '
He said researchers are now awaiting publication of the genetic sequence, which will provide more information about whether there have been further changes that could make it more severe and/or transmissible.
According to the WHO, the young girl's symptoms, which included fever, malaise and vomiting, began on March 7. She was admitted to a hospital in the state of Durango on March 13 due to respiratory failure. She was treated with oseltamivir, an antiviral drug, the following day. On March 16, she transferred to another hospital in the city of Torreón.
She died on April 8 from 'respiratory complications.'
The girl did not have any underlying medical conditions, had not received a seasonal influenza vaccination, and had no history of travel, according to the WHO report.
The source of the child's infection remains under investigation.
According to the report, 91 people were identified as contacts of the toddler, including 21 household contacts, 60 healthcare workers and 10 people from a childcare center. Each of these people was tested and all have tested negative for the virus.
Between 2022 and August 2024, there have been 75 reported H5N1 poultry outbreaks across Mexico, although none in Durango. At the end of January 2025, a sick vulture at the Sahuatoba Zoo, in Durango, was diagnosed with the virus. In addition, dozens of wild birds in the state were also reported, including a Canada goose.
The virus is still circulating in U.S. dairy herds, poultry, wild birds and wild mammals. Since April 1, there have been five new reports of infected dairy herds from California, 15 in Idaho and one from Arizona, according to the US Department of Agriculture.
There have also been dozens of domestic cats infected with the virus, including three recent reports from California's Orange and Alameda counties: two in Orange and one in Alameda.
According to the U.S. Centers for Disease Control and Prevention, there have been 70 reported cases of H5N1 bird flu in the U.S. since March 2024, when the virus was first reported in dairy herds. There has been one death, a person older than 65 from Louisiana.
Health officials say the risk of H5N1 bird flu to the general public remains low and there has been no indication of person-to-person spread. Most cases have been associated with contact with infected livestock and poultry.
Hashtags
Try Our AI Features
Explore what Daily8 AI can do for you:
Comments
No comments yet...
Related Articles
Yahoo
an hour ago
- Yahoo
Iowa exits statewide air quality alert
Smoke from Canadian wildfires worsened air quality in the eastern U.S. on Wednesday as several Midwestern states battled conditions deemed unhealthy by the federal government. The fires have forced thousands of Canadians to flee their homes and sent smoke as far as Europe. Iowa issued a statewide air quality alert through early Thursday, urging residents to limit certain outdoor activities and warning of possible health effects due to the thick smoke. Wisconsin officials made similar suggestions as the smoke drifted southeast across the state. In the U.S., smoke lingered on the skylines of cities from Kansas City to Minneapolis, and a swath of the region had unhealthy air quality Wednesday, according to an Environmental Protection Agency map. In Stoughton, Wisconsin, Nature's Garden Preschool was keeping its kids indoors Wednesday due to the bad air quality, which interferes with the daily routine, said assistant teacher Bailey Pollard. The smoke looked like a coming storm, he said. The 16 or 17 kids ages 12 weeks to 5 years old would typically be outdoors running or playing with water, balls and slides, but were instead inside doing crafts with Play-Doh or coloring. The situation was unfortunate because kids need to be outside and have fresh air and free play, Pollard said. 'It's something where we've got to take precaution for the kids,' he said. 'Nobody wants to stay inside all day.' In Michigan's Upper Peninsula, authorities advised people shut windows at night, avoid strenuous activity outside and watch for breathing issues. Parts of Maine, Vermont, New Hampshire and New York had areas of moderate air quality concern, and officials advised sensitive people to consider reducing outdoor activity. Unhealthy conditions persist in Midwest The Minnesota Pollution Control Agency issued an alert for almost the entire state into Wednesday, but the Twin Cities area got the region's worst of it Tuesday. Children's Minnesota, a network of pediatric clinics and hospitals in the Twin Cities area, has seen a 'modest increase' increase this week in patients with symptoms that doctors attributee to polluted air, Dr. Chase Shutak said. Their symptoms have included breathing problems, including asthma and other upper respiratory issues, said Shutak, who stays in close touch with other pediatricians in his role as medical director of the Minneapolis primary care clinic at Children's. The Iowa Department of Natural Resources warned that air quality in a band from the state's southwest corner to the northeast could fall into the unhealthy category through Thursday morning. The agency recommended that people — especially those with heart and lung disease — avoid long or intense activities and to take extra breaks during strenuous activity outdoors. Conditions at ground level are in the red The U.S. Environmental Protection Agency's AirNow map showed a swath of red for 'unhealthy' conditions across Wisconsin and northern Iowa. Conditions in northern Michigan also reflected many unhealthy zones. The Air Quality Index was around 160 in many parts of the upper Midwest, indicating poor conditions. The Air Quality Index , or AQI, measures how clean or polluted the air is, indicating which health effects might be experienced within a few hours or days after breathing polluted air. It is based on ground-level ozone, particle pollution, carbon monoxide, sulfur dioxide and nitrogen dioxide. Particulates are the main issue from the fires. The index ranges from green, indicating satisfactory air quality that poses little or no risk, to maroon, which is considered hazardous. That level comes with health warnings of emergency conditions, which are more likely to affect everyone. There were areas of reduced air quality all over the U.S. on Wednesday, with numerous advisories about moderate air quality concerns as far from the fires as Kansas and Georgia. The air quality was considerably better Wednesday in Minnesota, where only the barest hint of haze obscured the downtown Minneapolis skyline. The city experienced some of the worst air in the country on Tuesday. But the air quality index, which had reached the mid-200 range, or 'very unhealthy' on Tuesday, was down to 60, or 'moderate,' by Wednesday afternoon. The Canadian fire situation even reaches Europe Canada is having another bad wildfire season. Most of the smoke reaching the American Midwest has been coming from fires northwest of the provincial capital of Winnipeg in Manitoba. Canada's worst-ever wildfire season was in 2023 and choked much of North America with dangerous smoke for months. The smoke over western Europe is expected to keep moving eastward, according to the National Oceanographic and Atmospheric Administration. It's causing hazy skies, but not expected to affect surface-air quality. However, it could rise high enough to be carried that far, indicating the immense size and intensity of the fires, according to Copernicus. Whittle reported from Portland. Karnowski reported from Minneapolis. Associated Press writers Jack Dura in Bismarck, North Dakota; Kathy McCormack in Concord, New Hampshire; Tammy Webber in Fenton, Michigan; and Scott McFetridge in Des Moines, Iowa, contributed to this report. Copyright 2025 Nexstar Media, Inc. All rights reserved. This material may not be published, broadcast, rewritten, or redistributed.
Yahoo
an hour ago
- Yahoo
As Pilgrims Arrive in Makkah, Saudi Arabia Rolls Out Massive Operation to Safeguard Health
Massive health operation for world's largest religious gathering with 111,400 health services already delivered. 111,400 medical services delivered in first days Tens of thousands of health workers deployed 60% hospital bed capacity increase since 2024 MAKKAH, Saudi Arabia, June 5, 2025 /PRNewswire/ -- Saudi Arabia has deployed over 50,000 health workers and introduced advanced technologies to protect the health of pilgrims performing Hajj, the annual Islamic pilgrimage that represents one of the world's largest mass gatherings. The Ministry of Health reports 111,400 medical services have been delivered in the first days of the pilgrimage. New technologies include drones that deliver medical supplies in just 5 minutes, AI-augmented diagnostics and wearables to monitor vulnerable pilgrims. "I'm incredibly proud of our healthcare workers who are delivering comprehensive care around the clock. Their dedication has already provided 111,400 medical services since Hajj began and this level of support will continue for anybody that needs it," said His Excellency Fahad bin Abdulrahman AlJalajel, Saudi Minister of Health. Health infrastructure includes 183 medical facilities, 900 ambulances, and 11 air ambulance helicopters. The operation also includes the Middle East's first WHO-certified Special Medical Disaster Assistance Team on stand-by. Innovations and upgrades also include ambulance elevators installed at the Jamarat Bridge to transport patients directly to rooftop helipads for evacuation. Saudi Arabia has doubled the number of helicopter landing pads, with six now ensuring rapid evacuation of critical cases across the holy sites. The Seha Virtual Hospital, the world's largest, connects 224 facilities for remote consultations, new PET-CT scanners provide advanced diagnostics, while robotic surgeries have been launched this year for the first time at King Abdullah Medical City. Medical teams have performed 232 major surgeries including 18 open-heart operations to date. To mitigate extreme heat, the Kingdom has planted thousands of trees, installed hundreds of cooling stations and operates the world's largest air conditioning system in the Grand Mosque. The Ministry works with volunteers to distribute umbrellas while promoting multilingual guidance on crowd management, umbrella use, and hydration. The Ministry noted early signs that these joint efforts and adherence to crowd management plans have contributed to limiting the number of heat exhaustion cases this year, but that it would continue monitoring cases. The Ministry of Health commended the Royal Commission for Makkah, Ministry of Hajj and security personnel for their coordinated efforts in expanding shaded areas and crowd management to ensure safety and comfort. The technological innovations deployed with cross-government coordination during Hajj demonstrates how future health solutions can transform public health management at scale. The unprecedented operation comes as the five-day pilgrimage reaches its peak today on the Day of Arafah as pilgrims gather on Mount Arafat. Photo: View original content: Sign in to access your portfolio
Yahoo
2 hours ago
- Yahoo
CDC: Bird flu virus that infected Michigan dairy farmer capable of airborne transmission
The strain of bird flu that infected a Michigan dairy farmworker is capable of airborne transmission, amping up concerns about its potential to spark a new pandemic, according to a research letter published in June. In recent years, the H5N1 avian influenza virus has spilled over from birds to a growing number of mammals, including cats, skunks, raccoons, oppossums, rodents and bears. It was first identified in dairy cows in 2024, and then leaped from cows to humans. In May 2024, two Michigan dairy farmworkers contracted the virus. The first reported conjuctivitis, also known as pink eye, as the only symptom. The second Michigan farmworker's symptoms were a little bit different. That person reported upper respiratory tract symptoms, including cough without fever, and eye discomfort with watery discharge. Both recovered. Researchers isolated the virus from a swab used to collect a sample from the eye of one of the infected workers. That virus — clade 2.3.4.4b, genotype B3.13 — was studied to determine how transmissible it is, and the ways it spreads. "Because avian H5N1 viruses cross the species barrier and adapt to dairy cattle, each associated human infection presents further opportunity for mammal adaption," the study authors wrote in "Emerging Diseases," a peer-reviewed journal of the U.S. Centers for Disease Control and Prevention. "This potential poses an ongoing threat to public health and requires continual surveillance and risk assessment ... to improve our ability to predict and prepare for the next influenza pandemic." Scientists infected ferrets with that type of virus. Six of the infected ferrets were put in the same living space as six healthy ferrets, and within a week, all of them had bird flu, showing that direct contact spreads the disease. Six other healthy ferrets had no direct contact with the infected animals, but were breathing the same air as ferrets with H5N1 bird flu, and inhaled respiratory droplets. Three of those six previously healthy ferrets became infected, the study found, suggesting an airborne infection rate of 50%. Researchers also collected aerosol samples daily from three infected ferrets, and found evidence of airborne virus particles in samples from all three animals. More: Michigan farmers call for H5N1 bird flu vaccines to protect flocks, dairy cows from virus Ferrets have been used for decades in medical research studies, especially those involving flu viruses, because their lung physiology is similar to humans. They also have similar receptors in the respiratory tract that influenza viruses bind to. All of the infected ferrets survived the 21-day study, researchers said, recovering from moderate disease. On average, ferrets infected with H5N1 bird flu lost nearly 10% of their body weight and had fevers. They were lethargic, and had nasal and ocular discharge along with sneezing. Since 2022, there have been 70 confirmed and probable human cases of bird flu in the U.S. One person in Louisiana, who was exposed to wild birds and a backyard flock, died. To date, there have been no reports of human-to-human transmission, according to the CDC. More: Michigan geese, angry owner change protocol for killing flock exposed to bird flu The CDC says the risk to the average American from bird flu remains low, but it's higher for people who work with animals on farms, at zoos and other animal facilities. Contact Kristen Shamus at kshamus@ Subscribe to the Detroit Free Press. This article originally appeared on Detroit Free Press: Virus that infected Michigan dairy farmer capable of airborne spread
