Avian influenza, commonly referred to as the “bird flu,” is spreading rapidly across the United States. In a recent “Health 1+1” episode, Xiaoxu Sean Lin, a U.S. virology expert and former researcher at the Walter Reed Army Institute of Research, said that human infections with avian influenza were extremely rare prior to 2023. However, Lin warns that certain key mutations in the virus could significantly increase the risk if not closely monitored.
The Scale of the Outbreak
More than 160 million poultry have either died from avian influenza or been culled to control the spread of the infection, according to the U.S. Centers for Disease Control and Prevention. At the same time, instances of cross-species transmission have continued to increase. To date, 70 confirmed human cases of avian influenza infection have been confirmed, most of which are linked to transmission from dairy cattle.H5N1, which primarily spreads among birds, has nonetheless crossed species barriers, with infections now confirmed in dairy cows, cats, and other mammals, Lin said. This suggests that the virus may be adapting to new hosts.
