China Reports First Human Case Of H10N3 Bird Flu: What Do We Know
Authorities have asked people to put extreme care into food hygiene, as well as wear masks. Along with this, they've also asked people to check for fever and respiratory symptoms.
A 41-year old man in the eastern province of Jiangsu, China has reportedly been confirmed to be infected with a new strain of bird flu, according to a report by Reuters.
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The announcement was made by China's National Health Commission (NHC). The report states that the man is a resident of the city of Zhenjiang and experienced fever among a bunch of other symptoms, after which he was admitted to the hospital on April 28.
Further analysis resulted in the man being diagnosed with H10N3 avian influenza virus on May 28. The authorities haven't really shed light on how the person got infected and what the treatment was like. He is currently stable and is ready to be discharged from the medical facility.
Medical observation of individuals he came in close contact with haven't shown any symptoms or signs of the flu.
The NHC has also issued an advisory, asking people to avoid contact with sick or dead poultry. They've also asked people to avoid direct contact with live birds.
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Authorities have asked people to put extreme care into food hygiene, as well as wear masks. Along with this, they've also asked people to check for fever and respiratory symptoms.
How is it different from the old bird flu?
China is not new to avian influenza. There are various strains of avian influenza present in China that often sporadically infect individuals, especially those working in poultry.
Reuters
In February, reports revealed an outbreak of H5N8 avian influenza in Lianyungang, a coastal city also in the eastern province of Jiangsu and in April, a highly pathogenic H5N6 avian flu was found in wild birds in northeast China's Shenyang city.
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According to the report, the H10N3 is a low-pathogenic/ less severe variant of the virus. It also highlighted that, unlike the H7N9 strain that wreaked havoc during 2016 and 2017, killing around 300 individuals. The H7N9 variant was first reported in March 2013 in China.
As of now, H10N3 hasn't seen any other cases of human infection with the discovery in Zhenjiang being the first of its kind.