Chile detected the first case of bird flu in a human, the country’s health ministry reported as per news agency Reuters. The case was detected in a 53-year-old man, the ministry informed, adding that the patient showed severe influenza symptoms. The patient is now in stable condition, it informed, while the Chilean government is investigating the source of infection.
The government is also tracking down others that the patient came in contact with. The country has reported cases of the bird flu since late last year in wild animals. Recently, cases in industrial farms caused the government to stop poultry exports. Chilean health authorities had then said that the virus can be transmitted from birds or marine mammals to humans, but there is no known human-to-human transmission.
“This finding was made after a complaint made to the Maule SAG (agriculture and livestock agency) about an increase in mortality on the farm of around 70 birds and another 60 that were symptomatic of the virus,” the officials had said.
Such cases have also been detected in Argentina and at least 14 Latin American countries. Earlier this year, Ecuador confirmed its first case of human transmission of bird flu in a 9-year-old girl.