Colorado: Fourth US Dairy Worker Tests Positive For H5N1 Bird Flu

A fourth dairy worker in the US has tested positive for H5N1 bird flu, which is spreading among cattle herds throughout the country. According to state health officials, this Colorado-based worker, who had close contact with sick cows, experienced mild symptoms of conjunctivitis (eye infection).

Since it began re-circulating in 2020, H5N1 has killed millions of animals and spread to 139 cattle herds in 12 states, including 27 herds in Colorado.

This week, the US government announced a $176 million investment in Moderna to develop an mRNA bird flu vaccine, aiming to prepare for a potential H5N1 pandemic. Scientists are concerned the virus could mutate and spread among people.

H5N1 has a high death rate of around 50% since first detected in humans in the late 1990s, but the recent four US cases have been mild. In Texas and Michigan, two workers reported eye irritation, while one worker from Michigan reported having a respiratory illness that was only slightly severe.

The US Centers for Disease Control and Prevention (CDC) stated on Wednesday that the public health risk from H5N1 remains low but encouraged livestock workers to report any illness symptoms.

Although the virus can infect humans, there is no evidence of human-to-human transmission.

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