Texas reports second human case of Bird Flu linked to dairy cows

In Texas, a person has been diagnosed with bird flu, marking the second human case of the virus reported in the United States amidst recent outbreaks in dairy cow populations, BBC reported.

The Health Department of the state published news saying that an ill person noticed congestion in the eyes after contracting the infected cows.

The health office stressed that while the risk to the general public is low nevertheless animal owners should precisely pay attention to the safety guidelines for sick animals. The Texas patient is a candidate for anti-viral medication and is currently under hospitalisation and admitted in an isolated compartment.

While the name implies the bird origin, this disease was detected in the cows from many states, for example, Texas, Kansas and Michigan which suggests that this virus can migrate to other animals. 

Although transmission from humans is not a common pattern, this occasional mode has continued to happen all over the world. Both react to humans with very light conditions like mild respiratory and ocular complications to serious pneumonia, which can be deadly according to the CDC.

The first reported human case of H5N1 bird flu in the US was in Colorado. The victim who directly caught the bird flu from a flock of poultry is from there in 2022. Although bird flu has a very high death rate in birds, it is usually less fatal in animals.

The CDC advises people not to come in contact with animals who are sick or dead such as wild birds, domesticated farm animals and cattle, to boil milk and to refrain from consumption of unpasteurised raw milk products.