The avian flu continues to surprise people by spreading in novel ways. This time, a case of human infection with bird flu caused by H9N2 was detected in India. The World Health Organization (WHO) confirmed on Tuesday that a four-year-old child from West Bengal was diagnosed with bird flu in late January this year.
Notably, this is the second human infection of H9N2 bird flu from India, with the first in 2019, the agency said. Here’s all we know about the case from Bengal. The human case of bird flu in India The child was first taken to the hospital with fever, abdominal cramps and later seizures, according to The Indian Express .
The patient was admitted to the paediatric intensive care unit (ICU) of a local hospital due to persistent severe respiratory issues, high fever and abdominal cramps. In February, the child was finally discharged but was re-admitted on 3 March due to severe respiratory distress. The National Institute of Virology received a swab sample that was collected, and the virus was subtyped as H9N2.
On 1 May, the patient was eventually allowed to leave the hospital while receiving oxygen support. The patient had exposure to poultry at home and in his surroundings, and there were no known person reporting symptoms of respiratory illness among his family and other contacts, the agency said, as per Reuters . Information on the vaccination status and details of antiviral treatment were not available at the time of reporting, the WHO added.
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