Via CIDRAP: News Scan for May 23, 2016 | Avian flu cases; Pistachio Salmonella outbreak; Flu antigenic mutations. Excerpt:
Chinese officials reported another human case of H7N9 avian influenza, the second such infection in Hebei province in nearly 3 years, according to a post yesterday on Avian Flu Diary (AFD). Elsewhere, Egypt documented an H9 case in a toddler, according to a May 19 World Health Organization (WHO) report.
The H7N9 case in China involved a 57-year-old man from Xinji city in Hebei. He experienced onset of headache and fever on May 10 and was hospitalized in Hengshui city on May 16, where he remains in serious condition. The patient is a farmer, and his close contacts are being monitored for signs of illness, AFD said.
The infection is only the second H7N9 case in Hebei province since the virus emerged in China 4 years ago. Hebei's last H7N9 case occurred in July 2013, AFD said.
The new case lifts the global H7N9 total to 789, according to a list maintained by FluTrackers, an infectious disease message board.
Elsewhere, the WHO reported an H9 infection in an 18-month-old boy from Cairo governorate who was exposed to live poultry at a market. The boy developed symptoms on Apr 10 and is in good condition. Though this is not confirmed, his infection is likely due to H9N2, which causes mild illness, the WHO said.
Globally, 28 cases of H9N2 have been reported, and the virus shows no evidence of human-to-human transmission, the WHO said.
