The H5N1 virus has been decimating birds around the world since 2020, and during that time the World Health Organization (WHO) has detected a total of 35 cases in humans. Little is being considered, and it also does not appear that the virus is capable of passing from one human to another, but scientists are concerned because It is increasingly detected in passageways. These experts are particularly aware of the virus’s advance in the United States and fear that it could adapt to humans, as happened with the covid virus in China in 2019.
In early April, the North American country reported that the virus had been detected for the first time in dairy cows on farms in Texas, Kansas and Michigan. In just five months, The number of dairy herds affected in this country is 196 and 14 states have detected outbreaks of the disease on their farms, according to the U.S. Centers for Disease Control and Prevention (CDC).
The CDC also counted a total of 15 cases of human infection in the country: ten of them were infected through contact with poultry, four through cash cows and one that still remains a mystery. Missouri state health officials announced over the weekend that a person was infected with the H5 virus. Although the virus typically causes mild symptoms in humans, the person was hospitalized due to pre-existing conditions.
“Wet markets”
Regardless, the patient recovered shortly after receiving antivirals. However, the case has raised fears that this contagion could have been caused by a mutation of the virus because, while in other cases contagion has been linked to contact with an infected animal, in this case no such link could be established. The more a virus passes from one organism to another and from one species to another, the more likely it is to mutate and adapt to those it had not previously infected.
For this reason, New York City has regained its concern about its wet markets (wet markets, These are spaces containing live animals, mainly chickens, ducks and quails, in which Customers can choose one and sacrifice it on the spot and bring your fresh meat home. According to The New York TimesThere are about 70 of them throughout the city and they are very close to residential areas. Contact between birds and humans in these places can be very close.
These markets are perhaps reminiscent of the one in Wuhan, China, where the covid virus is said to have adapted and transmitted to humans. Although they have several differences, such as stricter health regulations and the fact that they do not have exotic animalsExperts and citizens have expressed concern about the potential risk they pose. However, the debate continues against those who consider that their removal would destroy jobs and would be an attack on the cultural diversity of the city. Regarding the latter idea, one of the objectives of these markets is to provide meat to religious groups.
Explosion of cases
Due to their cultural nature, these markets also attract international tourists. “Some of the city’s animal markets have already experienced outbreaks of bird flu and operators have had to kill hundreds of birds. New York State Inspectors Shut Down Seven Establishments which were affected by bird flu in 2022 and 2023 for an average of five days, but were allowed to reopen after cleaning and disinfecting them,” the article explains in The New York Times.
Harvard University studied live animal markets in 15 countries around the world, including those in the United States. Ann Linder, associate director of the Harvard Animal Law and Policy Program, said the study found that these markets are “a serious threat to the health security of the entire planet and that their regulations are not proportional to the risk they represent.” In fact, the expert believes that this risk is underestimated.
“Since April, the H5N1 avian influenza virus has affected 35 commercial bird flocks and 20 indoor flocks, contributing to the deaths of nearly 19 million birds in the United States. As of late February, New York State had identified 27 flocks with avian influenza, affecting nearly 26,000 birds,” he said. The New York Times. As birds are normally crowded in these urban markets, the risk of the virus being transmitted from one to another is high and also that a human could contract it.
