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PUBLIC HEALTH AGENCIES IN CANADA, THE U.S. AND EUROPE AGREE THE RISK TO HUMAN HEALTH REMAINS LOW

Canadian PressPublished: Apr 13th, 2023 2:45pm

‘Potentially devastating’: Bird flu cases in mammals put scientists on alert

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By Jordan Omstead

A rise in mammals infected with bird flu has put Canadian wildlife and public health experts on alert, as recent research by federal scientists warns of a “potentially devastating pandemic” if the virus tearing through poultry flocks eventually mutates to spread efficiently between humans. 

Avian influenza cases are very rare in humans – there have been fewer than a dozen confirmed H5N1 cases globally since 2020 – and no instances of it passing from human to human. But experts say public health agencies are right to keep a close eye on how the highly pathogenic avian influenza H5N1 evolves.

“There are enough red flags that we’re beholden to prepare,” said Dr. Samira Mubareka, an infectious disease specialist and clinician scientist at Sunnybrook Research Institute and the University of Toronto.

H5N1 was first identified in 1996, but a new type of the virus emerged in 2020. It was first detected in North America in late 2021 and has since decimated flocks of wild and domesticated birds, resulting in millions of poultry deaths across Canada either from infection or culls to prevent its spread. 

While cases in mammals are to be expected during a bird flu outbreak, Mubareka said part of what’s captured the attention of scientists is the range of species infected.

“If the virus spills over into new species, it always gains an opportunity to mutate and adapt even further,” she said. “So this is really an unprecedented level of viral activity for H5N1.”