Another dairy cow herd has been infected with Avian Flu (bird flu) in Michigan. If laboratory tests confirm bird flu as the cause of the illnesses, it would be the state’s 30th outbreak.
In California, Avian Flu has been detected in 5 more cow herds in the Central Valley region. The state has seen 105 outbreaks in cows. The series of outbreaks has occurred in tandem with a rise in in human infections. In the US, most of the human cases of Avian Flu have been dairy workers. Nationwide, the virus has infected at least 305 dairy herds across from 14 states.
While the immediate threat of the virus to humans remain low, the largely uncontrolled outbreaks are driving the ongoing mutation of the virus. The longer the virus circulates among dairy cows, poultry birds and other mammals, the more likely that it evolve to more easily infect people. “Every time you give an avian virus a chance to infect a human, it’s like buying a ticket for a lottery you don’t want to win,” explains Troy Suttons, a virologist at Penn State University who focuses on the spread of Avian Flu.
