Chickens on two more farms in British Columbia have been infected with H5N2 avian influenza, bringing the total to 10 and the number of birds dead or scheduled for culling to nearly 234,000 since the outbreak's start just 2 weeks ago, say news sources and official reports.
Though still below epidemic thresholds, US influenza activity has begun to pick up, and the vaccine mismatch with circulating H3N2 strains has reached two-thirds, the Centers for Disease Control and Prevention (CDC) said today in its weekly update.
In addition, two more children died from flu.
Despite the incomplete uptake and moderate effectiveness of the seasonal influenza vaccine, the Centers for Disease Control and Prevention (CDC) estimates that vaccination prevented more than 7 million illnesses and about 90,000 hospitalizations during the 2013-14 flu season.
Canadian officials yesterday confirmed H5N2 avian flu in the three most recent poultry outbreaks in British Columbia's Fraser Valley, bringing to five the number of farms in the area infected with that strain, according to a report filed by the Canadian Food Inspection Agency (CFIA) with the World Organization for Animal Health (OIE).
A 61-year-old man from the Najran province of Saudi Arabia has become the country's 819th MERS-CoV case-patient, according to an update today from Saudi Arabia's Ministry of Health (MOH).
Influenza activity in the United States has picked up slightly but is still well below epidemic levels, while the mismatch between circulating H3N2 viruses and the vaccine strain rose to 58%, the Centers for Disease Control and Prevention (CDC) said in its weekly update today.
A systematic review published today of data on 15,698 children found that premature birth may need to be added to the risk factors that place children at risk for serious complications from influenza, but an accompanying commentary advised not reading too much into the findings.
Canadan officials confirm high-path H5N2, while the Netherlands and India combat more H5 in birds.
Egypt has announced another death from H5N1 avian flu, the fourth this week, Reuters reported today.
A 26-year-old man from Minya governorate in the north central part of the country who worked with birds has died, Egypt's health ministry reported. He came to a hospital after developing a fever, coughing, and shortness of breath.
Highly pathogenic H5N1 avian influenza has killed three people in Egypt, say media reports today. The three adult case-patients reportedly had contact with infected birds.
