Three poultry workers at a farm in northeastern Colorado are suspected to be infected Avian influenzaState and federal health officials made the announcement Friday.
The Colorado Department of Public Health and Environment said in a statement that the three tested positive for the H5N1 virus, also known as avian influenza, while working at a “commercial egg-laying facility.”
The department said people at the farm who were culling poultry developed mild symptoms including conjunctivitis and common respiratory infections. No one required hospitalization.
The samples were sent to the US Centers for Disease Control and Prevention for confirmatory testing.
The CDC said the three people “worked at a poultry facility affected by an outbreak of H5N1 virus that has spread among wild birds and caused a multistate outbreak in dairy cattle and poultry.”
Four cases of avian influenza have been confirmed in the United States since March, all in agricultural workers and two in Michigan, One in Texas and One in ColoradoThe CDC said:
In the latter case, a farm worker in northern Colorado developed conjunctivitis after coming into direct contact with cattle infected with avian influenza, CDPHE previously reported.
According to the U.S. Department of Agriculture: was there Avian influenza has been confirmed in 152 cattle herds so far this year.
The CDC said the risk to the general public from avian influenza remains low, noting that “there are no indications of unexpected increases in influenza activity in Colorado or other states where H5 avian influenza is occurring in cattle or poultry.”
But it added that “human infection with this novel influenza virus (and other viruses) is of concern because of the potential for severe disease.”
Federal officials are considering if and when to deploy them. 4.8 million doses Avian flu vaccine in Finland Announced The company had planned to offer vaccinations to workers at risk of exposure to the virus last month.
—Alexander Ting contributed to this report.
