A Yakima County resident hospitalized with severe avian influenza after exposure at a dairy with infected cattle has died, the Yakima Health District said. The district also reported a third confirmed human case, a person who has not been hospitalized, and said public risk remains low.
A Yakima County resident who was hospitalized with severe illness after contracting avian influenza has died, according to the Yakima Health District. The patient had been exposed to bird flu at a dairy with infected cattle and had underlying health conditions.
The district reported a third confirmed human case of avian influenza in the county in the same release. That person is a resident who was exposed to infected dairy cattle at a Yakima County dairy, and has not had severe illness or been hospitalized.
The Yakima Health District says officials are monitoring people who had close contact with the patient and working with public health partners. Public health officials are continuing to monitor those contacts for symptoms.
The district says the risk of avian influenza infection to the general public remains low. Health officials said dairy workers, and others with close or prolonged contact with infected animals or contaminated environments, are at greater risk. The health district described human-to-human transmission of avian influenza as extremely rare and said it has never been documented in the United States.
