Person contracts bird flu from Texas dairy cows infected with the virus

A person is being treated for bird flu after contact with Texas dairy cows infected with the virus, state and federal officials said Monday. This is the first time avian influenza A(H5N1) has been detected in cattle in the United States, the Texas Department of State Health Services said.

DSHS officials said they believe the human case is linked to recent detections of the virus found this year in two dairy herds in Texas and two in Kansas. The DSHS report didn't specify where in Texas the affected dairy farms are located.

Avian influenza has rarely been transmitted from person to person, so the risk of the virus spreading to the general public is low, officials with state and federal agencies said. However, people in close contact with animals suspected of carrying the virus have a higher risk of infection, they added.

Signs and symptoms of avian influenza infection present much like usual cases of the flu. The symptoms may include fever, chills, sore throat, runny or stuffy nose, fatigue, eye redness and vomiting.

A dairy herd in Montcalm County, Michigan, also tested positive for the virus after receiving infected but asymptomatic cattle transported from an affected farm in Texas. The cattle from Texas exhibited no illness during the point of sale or transit, Michigan Department of Agriculture and Rural Services officials said.

Though initial reports of the virus in cattle indicate it was introduced by wild birds, this new data suggests other pathways to infection.

“Transmission between cattle cannot be ruled out,” the U.S. Department of Agriculture said.

Prior to this incident, the last case was detected in Colorado in 2022 by a person who tested positive for the virus after contact with infected chickens.

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