A man in Chile is infected with a bird flu that has concerning mutations, but the threat to people from the virus remains low, U.S. health officials said Friday.
Past animal studies suggest these mutations could cause the virus to be more harmful or spread more easily, health officials said. But they also said there is no evidence that the mutations would make it easier for it to take root in a person's upper lungs -- a development that would raise concerns about spread among people.
This type of flu, called Type A H5N1, was first identified as a threat to people during a 1997 outbreak in Hong Kong, when visitors to live poultry markets caught it. In the U.S., it has recently been detected in wild birds in every state, as well as in commercial poultry operations and backyard flocks across the country. Since the beginning of last year, tens of millions of chickens have died of the virus or been killed to stop outbreaks from spreading, one of the reasons cited for soaring U.S. egg prices.
His symptoms worsened and he eventually was sent to an intensive care unit and treated with antiviral medicines and antibiotics. He is still hospitalized and being monitored, CDC officials said.
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