Louisiana Department of Health (LDH) announced on Monday that a person died from bird flu.
This case marks the first human death from bird flu, also known as H5N1—the bird flu outbreak started in America in 2022.
The health department did not announce much information about the person who died; however, it did say that the person was over 65 years old and had underlying medical conditions.
“The Department expresses its deepest condolences to the patient’s family and friends as they mourn the loss of their loved one. Due to patient confidentiality and respect for the family, this will be the final update about the patient,” the press release says.
In December, the CDC conducted a genetic analysis of this person’s bird flu and found the person to have been infected with the “D1.1 genotype virus.”
The CDC said this virus was “detected in wild birds and poultry in the United States and in recent human cases in British Columbia, Canada, and Washington State.”
LDH “identified no additional H5N1 cases nor evidence of person-to-person transmission.”
Also, the LDH said the person contracted the bird flu disease after “exposure to a combination of a non-commercial backyard flock and wild birds.”
According to the CDC, 66 confirmed human cases of bird flu have occurred in America. Forty of these cases came from dairy herds and 23 from poultry farms. Furthermore, one source came from “another animal exposure” and two from an unknown exposure source.
The CDC rates this public health hazard as a low threat to the public.
LDH recommends these actions to protect people from bird flu:
- Do not touch sick or dead animals or their droppings and do not bring sick wild animals into your home.
- Keep your pets away from sick or dead animals and their feces.
- Do not eat uncooked or undercooked food. Cook poultry, eggs and other animal products to the proper temperature and prevent cross-contamination between raw and cooked food.
– – –
Zachery Schmidt is the digital editor of The Star News Network. Email tips to Zachery at zschmidt1717@gmail.com. Follow Zachery on Twitter @zacheryschmidt2.
