UNITED NATIONS, Jan 07 : A day after the United States reported its first human death from avian flu, the UN World Health Organization (WHO) insisted on Tuesday that the risk to the wider population remains \u201clow\u201d.<\/p>\n
WHO spokesperson Dr. Margaret Harris told reporters in Geneva that the H5N1 virus causing the disease is \u201cnot circulating in humans but jumping into humans\u201d who are exposed to poultry or dairy cattle. \u201cWe\u2019re not seeing sustained circulation,\u201d she insisted.<\/p>\n
The man who died of the disease in the US state of Louisiana was over 65 and reportedly had underlying medical conditions, Dr. Harris said.<\/p>\n
According to the health authorities, he had been exposed to chickens and wild birds. Several dozen people in the US have contracted avian influenza \u2013 commonly referred to as bird flu \u2013 during the current outbreak, mainly farmworkers in close contact with poultry flocks and cattle herds.<\/p>\n
Dr. Harris stressed that WHO\u2019s assessment of the risk to the general population \u201cis still low and remains set\u201d. The main concern is for people who work in animal industries because they need to be better protected from infection.<\/p>\n
The WHO spokesperson added that the United States was continuing to carry out \u201ca lot of surveillance\u201d in the human and animal population, \u201cin the methods we use for farming, for our food production\u2026all those things need to be combined because indeed it always does pose a risk\u201d.<\/p>\n
Meanwhile, a respiratory virus gaining ground in China, known as the human metapneumovirus, or hMPV, has been sparking media attention in recent weeks, but it does not represent a new or major threat, Dr. Harris insisted.<\/p>\n
The UN health agency spokesperson said that such infections are on the rise in China \u201cas expected during winter\u201d, with seasonal influenza being \u201cby far the most common among them\u201d, as reported by the Chinese Center for Disease Control and Prevention.<\/p>\n
\u201cChina\u2019s reported levels of respiratory infections are within the usual range for the winter season,\u201d Dr. Harris explained. \u201cAuthorities report that hospital utilization is currently lower than this time last year, and there have been no emergency declarations or responses triggered,\u201d she added.<\/p>\n
As for hMPV, it was first identified in 2001 and \u201chas been in the human population for a long time\u201d, Dr. Harris clarified.<\/p>\n
She added that it is a common virus that circulates in winter and spring and usually \u201ccauses respiratory symptoms similar to the common cold\u201d.<\/p>\n
Like any of the hundreds of common cold viruses known to exist, it can lead to more serious disease in patients with low immunity, particularly but not limited to newborns and the elderly.<\/p>\n
Asked about hMPV\u2019s mortality rate, Dr. Harris described it as \u201cvery, very low\u201d. It is not a pathogen that normally leads to deaths in humans, save for the most vulnerable, she concluded, recommending \u201csimple\u201d prevention measures, such as wearing a mask, improving ventilation of closed spaces and handwashing.<\/p>\n","protected":false},"excerpt":{"rendered":"
UNITED NATIONS, Jan 07 : A day after the United States reported its first human death from avian flu, the UN World Health Organization (WHO) insisted on Tuesday that the risk to the wider population remains \u201clow\u201d. WHO spokesperson Dr. Margaret Harris told reporters in […]<\/p>\n
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