China records first human case of bird flu strain: In an article by Reuters, a 41-year-old man in China’s eastern province of Jiangsu is confirmed as the first human case of infection with a rare strain of bird flu – H10N3, confirms the National Health Commission in Beijing. The Zhenjiang resident was hospitalized on April 28 and diagnosed on May 28, no other case of human infection with the H10N3 has been reported previously. Read more: China reports first human case of H10N3 bird flu, an article by Reuters.
“The source of the patient’s exposure to the H10N3 virus is not known at this time, and no other cases were found in emergency surveillance among the local population. At this time, there is no indication of human-to-human transmission. As long as avian influenza viruses circulate in poultry, sporadic infection of avian influenza in humans is not surprising, which is a vivid reminder that the threat of an influenza pandemic is persistent,” a statement of the World Health Organization in response to Reuters in Geneva.
An article by Prevention gives light on what H10N3 is. A type of bird flu or avian flu, illnesses are common in wild aquatic birds and can infect domestic poultry and other bird and animal species, (according to the Center for Disease Control and Prevention, or CDC). Not normally infectious to humans but crossover infections may happen, says the CDC. Read more: What is the H10N3 bird flu? Experts explain possible human case reported in China, an article by Prevention.
Birds infected with the strain shed avian flu in their saliva, mucus, and feces, and humans can be infected via entry in the eyes, nose, mouth, or inhaled from infected droplets.
The CDC lists possible symptoms of H10N3 and it includes pink eye, fever, cough, sore throat, muscle aches, nausea, stomach pain, diarrhea, vomiting, shortness of breath, difficulty breathing, pneumonia, altered mental status, and seizures.
