First Human Case of Bird Flu Confirmed in Chile, Patient in Stable Condition

In March 2023, dogs were found next to dead chickens inside a pit at a poultry farm in Rancagua, Chile. Following this incident, Chilean health authorities have noted that the bird flu virus can be transmitted from birds or marine mammals to humans, but there is no known human-to-human transmission. However, on Wednesday, the country’s health ministry confirmed the first case of bird flu in a human in Chile. The 53-year-old man, who is from the coastal city of Tocopilla, presented severe influenza symptoms and is currently in stable condition. The government is investigating the source of contagion as well as others who were in contact with the patient. Chile has reported cases of the H5N1 bird flu since late last year in wild animals, and recent cases in industrial farms caused the government to halt poultry exports. Chilean health authorities have activated the health protocols for the management of this disease and taken samples for analysis by the Institute of Public Health. The institute confirmed that it is avian influenza. Earlier this year, Ecuador confirmed its first case of human transmission of bird flu in a nine-year-old girl. Global health officials have said the risk of transmission between humans is low, but vaccine makers have been preparing bird flu shots for humans just in case. There have been several reports of H5N1 bird flu outbreaks around the world in recent weeks, with China reporting a case of H5N1 infection in a woman from Jiangsu province and two people in Cambodia being infected with an older variant of H5N1.