Chile confirmed its first case of bird flu in humans

The

reported this Wednesday the first case of bird flu in humans in that country, which corresponds to a 53-year-old man.

Several positive cases in animals had already been detected in almost all its regions.

The health portfolio reported that the patient presents

, but that he is stable.

The ministry did not reveal the identity of the man or the region where the infection occurred.

According to the local newspaper

, the health protocols established for the management of this disease were activated and the corresponding tests were taken for analysis by the Institute of Public Health (ISP).

At a press conference, the head of the agency, Minister

, clarified that "there is currently no person-to-person transmission

.

Humans contract bird flu only "through contact with sick animals," he stressed.

At the moment, the source of contact is being investigated and whether there is a history of others affected in the patient's environment.

"In this case, the origin of the patient is going to be investigated, what history he has, what type of contact he had with dead birds or animals, if there are other people who have shared this type of contact and look for people who have a compatible clinical picture to ask them. exams,” Aguilera said.

Finally, as in our country, the Chilean Ministry of Health called "not to handle sick or dead birds or mammals" and urged poultry workers "to follow safety protocols."

In addition, they indicated that this workforce should be vaccinated against seasonal influenza. 

Sick animals in Chile

In people, the H5N1 virus can cause coughing, diarrhea and fever over 38°C, among other symptoms.

It can be transmitted from birds or marine mammals to humans, but there are no known cases of human-to-human transmission.

Birds killed by bird flu.

Photo file.

Chile has already detected the virus in wild birds, sea lions and otters in 13 of its 16 regions.

The first case was reported in December 2022 in the city of Arica (border with Peru).

Last week, Chile's Agricultural and Livestock Service reported the detection of a bird flu case at an industrial facility in southern Chile, which involved the slaughter of nearly 50,000 birds.

With information from agencies

DB

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