Bird flu, known as ‘avian influenza’, a virus that began by primarily infecting birds, has started infecting humans throughout the United States, according to the Center of Disease Control and Prevention (CDC).
The CDC recorded a timeline within the last year, sharing the virus’s spread from birds, goats, cows and now humans due to a cow-to-human spread of H5N1 bird flu.
With the newfound discovery of cows becoming susceptible to the virus, Kentucky faces concerns due to homing 32,000 farmers raising 2.1 million cattle and calves according to the Kentucky Beef Council website.
According to the CDC, the first confirmed human case testing positive for the highly pathogenic avian influenza was in April 2024. Since then, the CDC has confirmed 66 human cases of H5N1 bird flu in the U.S., and one confirmed death in Louisiana.
In June 2024, only three cases were confirmed in two states according to the American Medical Association website. Currently, there are 66 confirmed cases in 10 states.
The Department of Fish and Wildlife Resources has found snow geese in Henderson County with the highly pathogenic avian influenza.
Ten counties in Kentucky, according to the Kentucky Department of Fish and Wildlife Resources website, have since had geese found with the avian influenza, including the following:
- Ballard
- Franklin
- Fulton
- Henderson
- Hopkins
- Jefferson
- Kenton
- Muhlenberg
- Rowan
- Wayne
The bird flu is an infectious disease caused by a group of influenza A viruses, according to the Commonwealth of Kentucky website.
These viruses naturally occur in waterfowl and shorebirds, but can affect other domestic and wild bird species.
People who are in close proximity to birds, cows and other susceptible animals are most at risk of this strain of influenza.
According to the U.S. Department of Agriculture website, there have been recent detections of the influenza in poultry and livestock, which could affect agriculture in the commonwealth.
The bird flu has yet to spread from bird species in the state of Kentucky, however, there is still a risk for susceptibility to other animals.
“There have been some rare cases of human infection with these viruses,” according to the CDC. “Human infections with avian influenza viruses can happen when virus gets into a person’s eyes, nose or mouth, or is inhaled.”
According to the National Health Service website, symptoms of the bird flu include:
- A very high temperature or feeling hot or shivery
- Aching muscles
- Headache
- A cough or shortness of breath
- Diarrhea
- Sickness
- Stomach pain
- Chest pain
- Bleeding from the nose and gums
- Conjunctivitis (pink eye)
The National Health Service says symptoms of the bird influenza can take up to three to five days to appear and getting treated quickly can prevent complications and reduce the risk of further sickness development.
Although the health risks appear to be rare, officials at the CDC encourage precaution.
“However, because of the possibility that bird flu viruses could change and gain the ability to spread easily between people, monitoring for human infection and person-to-person spread is extremely important for public health.” the CDC said.
Kentucky has yet to confirm any human cases of the bird flu and risk remains low, however, avoiding exposure is still emphasized by officials.
Potential cases of the bird flu can be reported to the Commonwealth of Kentucky through an online portal or by calling the Kentucky Department of Fish and Wildlife Resources at 1-800-858-1549.
