Highly Pathogenic Avian Influenza Poses a Serious Threat to Poultry Birds

The outbreak of bird flu has placed lots of farmers on high alert with the cases of "highly pathogenic avian influenza" increasing throughout the state.

Ducks slaughtered due to the avian flu outbreak

(Photo : GAIZKA IROZ/AFP via Getty Images)

Spread of Highly Pathogenic Avian Influenza (HPAI)

Reports on the outbreak have been confirmed in several states and most recently at the Suffolk County, New York.

This confirmation was made by the United States Department of Agriculture's (USDA's) Animal and Plant Health Inspection Service (APHIS). The flu has also been spreading in Kentucky, especially in a Tyson Foods facility that houses nearly a quarter-million broilers. This was confirmed on Monday after some chickens from Kentucky and Virginia tested positive.

Also, there were similar reports from Indiana last week on a turkey farm, the outbreak lead to the death of about 29,000 birds within a year, according to Forbes.

But the reports on this highly pathogenic bird flu have only affected wild birds and poultry, there are still no records of human contraction.

According to Matthew Koci, a viral immunologist at North Carolina State University, this flu poses less threat to humans but is capable of wiping off about 60 to 100 percent of a flock which makes it highly dangerous to poultry livestock.

Also Read: 29,000 Turkeys Killed to Prevent a Highly Pathogenic Strain of Bird Flu in the U.S.

Poultry Lockdown Due to the Spread

Clearly, anything tagged as "highly pathogenic" would be of great danger if not controlled properly. According to reports, the flu has already been confirmed in Norway, France, Belgium, the Netherlands, Japan, South Korea, and China. This has led to poultry lockdown.

Matthew Koci told a CBS affiliate in North Carolina that this flu can be contained if they are detected early in poultry farms and the safety precaution is applied immediately. According to Koci, if this epidemic is not placed under full control, then "the economic impact could be devastating,".

The devastating reports on this outbreak have placed the US agricultural sector on their toes as they battle hard to find solutions before the flu goes out of control.

According to Interesting Engineering, the last bird flu outbreak from reports occurred about 7 years ago claiming the lives of about 50 million turkeys and chickens. The outbreak was centered in the midwest and caused the government about $900 million to save the situation upon the huge economical loss caused by the outbreak.

Can the Highly Pathogenic Strain Spread to Humans?

As of this year, 139 positive cases in a wide range of species have been reported. The agency had stated that this was expected as the outbreak started from the wild birds. These birds can spread the virus easily through migration, also the sick birds were found up and down the east coast, from Florida to New Hampshire.

The agency still reassures that this flu hasn't been confirmed as a huge threat to humans since the recent reports have shown zero human contraction and for over two decades, just four people have contracted the virus in the US.

However, this doesn't confirm zero chance of an epidemic or pandemic outbreak of this flu to humans as more than 700 cases have been reported worldwide since 2003, mostly in workers who came in direct contact with infected birds.

Precautions and safety measures on this flu are still applied to avoid unprecedented situations in the future.

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