Chile reports first human case of avian influenza

The Chilean Ministry of Health yesterday reported the first human case of avian flu in the South American country, a disease detected in a 53-year-old man affected by a severe case of influenza.

“The patient is stable within his seriousness,” said the ministry in a statement released to the media on Wednesday.

The entity assured that the infected person resides in the northern area of the Andean nation, where he is hospitalized.

The Government pointed out that given this fact, the health protocols established for managing the disease and the corresponding tests for their analysis were activated.

For its part, the Public Health Institute (ISP) confirmed that it is avian influenza and is investigating the source of contact and the existence of others affected in the patient’s environment.

The H5N1 virus or “avian flu” is a virus that can be transmitted from birds or marine mammals to humans, but “there are no known cases of human-to-human transmission”, the health authorities indicated.

With this first recorded case, the Ministry of Health reiterated its call to the public not to handle sick or dead birds or mammals.

It also urged agricultural workers to follow the corresponding safety protocols and vaccinate against seasonal influenza.