Hong Kong's CHP is reporting another human infection with avian H5N6 on the Mainland - the 13th case of 2022 - which follows roughly 3 dozen cases in 2021.
While China is on pace to equal or exceed last year's record number of cases,reporting from the Mainland is often erratic, and frequently belated, making it difficult to know how accurate of a picture we really have of their avian flu situation.
Between 2014 and late 2020, China has reported an average of just 4-5 cases a year, and had seen a 3 year decline in cases following the introduction of a new H5+H7 poultry vaccine in 2017.
Since late in 2020, we've seen a decided increase in cases, with more than 50 reported over the past 18 months. Since China has not reported a concurrent jump in H5N6 outbreaks in poultry, there are reasons to believe the virus may be spreading stealthily in vaccinated birds, from which it occasionally jumps to humans.
While H5N6 is often deadly in humans, so far we've seen no evidence that the virus is able to transmit efficiently from human-to-human, which has greatly limited its public health impact.
This report from Hong Kong's CHP.
The Centre for Health Protection (CHP) of the Department of Health is today (April 20) closely monitoring a human case of avian influenza A(H5N6) in the Mainland, and again urged the public to maintain strict personal, food and environmental hygiene both locally and during travel.
The case involves a 56-year-old male living in Deyang City in Sichuan Province, who had exposure to live domestic poultry before onset. He developed symptoms on March 31 and was admitted for treatment on April 4. He is in serious condition.
From 2014 to date, 77 human cases of avian influenza A(H5N6) have been reported by Mainland health authorities.
"All novel influenza A infections, including H5N6, are notifiable infectious diseases in Hong Kong," a spokesman for the CHP said.
Travellers to the Mainland or other affected areas must avoid visiting wet markets, live poultry markets or farms. They should be alert to the presence of backyard poultry when visiting relatives and friends. They should also avoid purchasing live or freshly slaughtered poultry, and avoid touching poultry/birds or their droppings. They should strictly observe personal and hand hygiene when visiting any place with live poultry.
Travellers returning from affected areas should consult a doctor promptly if symptoms develop, and inform the doctor of their travel history for prompt diagnosis and treatment of potential diseases. It is essential to tell the doctor if they have seen any live poultry during travel, which may imply possible exposure to contaminated environments. This will enable the doctor to assess the possibility of avian influenza and arrange necessary investigations and appropriate treatment in a timely manner.
While local surveillance, prevention and control measures are in place, the CHP will remain vigilant and work closely with the World Health Organization and relevant health authorities to monitor the latest developments.
The public should maintain strict personal, hand, food and environmental hygiene and take heed of the advice below when handling poultry:
The public may visit the CHP's pages for more information: the avian influenza page, the weekly Avian Influenza Report, global statistics and affected areas of avian influenza, the Facebook Page and the YouTube Channel.
- Avoid touching poultry, birds, animals or their droppings;
- When buying live chickens, do not touch them and their droppings. Do not blow at their bottoms. Wash eggs with detergent if soiled with faecal matter and cook and consume the eggs immediately. Always wash hands thoroughly with soap and water after handling chickens and eggs;
- Eggs should be cooked well until the white and yolk become firm. Do not eat raw eggs or dip cooked food into any sauce with raw eggs. Poultry should be cooked thoroughly. If there is pinkish juice running from the cooked poultry or the middle part of its bone is still red, the poultry should be cooked again until fully done;
- Wash hands frequently, especially before touching the mouth, nose or eyes, before handling food or eating, and after going to the toilet, touching public installations or equipment such as escalator handrails, elevator control panels or door knobs, or when hands are dirtied by respiratory secretions after coughing or sneezing; and
- Wear a mask if fever or respiratory symptoms develop, when going to a hospital or clinic, or while taking care of patients with fever or respiratory symptoms.
Ends/Wednesday, April 20, 2022
Issued at HKT 19:35
With China's growing COVID problem, and reportedly 45 cities under various degrees of lockdown, it is far from clear how much of China's avian flu problem is being reported.
Stay tuned.
