China: Woman Dies Of Combined H3N2 And H10N5 Bird Flu, Risk Of Human Transmission Is Low (representational image @Pixabay)

China reported about death of a woman due to bird flu. The report said the woman was infected with the combined H3N2 and H10N5 strains of the bird flu after a cross species transmission. It said the risk of human-to-human transmission is low.

The 63-year-old woman from the Anhui province is said to have an underlying health conditions including developed cough, sore throat, fever, and other symptoms on November 30. She was died on December 16, as said by National Disease Control and Prevention Administration. It said screenings of close-contact were negative and no suspected cases were reported.

Whole genome sequence analysis of the virus showed that the H10N5 virus is of avian origin and did not posses the ability to effectively infect humans, as said by the agency. It said, “the outbreak is an episodic cross-species transmission from bird to humans,”. It is also stated that no instance of human-to-human transmission were reported.

China is known for the abundance presence of both farmed and wild birds of many species, and thus creating an ideal environment for avian viruses to mix and mutate.

The bird flu or avian influenza refers to disease caused by infection of avian (bird) influenza (flu) Type A viruses. The viruses are naturally spread among the wild aquatic birds across the globe. It can infect domestic poultry and other bird and animal species. However, as per the centres foe disease control and prevention, scattered human infections with bird flu viruses have occurred.