Bird flu may spread among people: Study
Scientists have reported that the first likely case of human-to-human transmission of the H7N9 bird flu virus has emerged in China.
According to an article published in the British Medical Journal (BMJ) on Wednesday, a 60-year-old man who died in hospital in eastern China due to bird flu apparently has transmitted the virus to his daughter
The 32-year-old woman became sick shortly after taking care of her ill father without proper protections, and died of the virus in the hospital.
The scientists concluded that the "most likely explanation" for the illness of the daughter was the transmission of the virus from her father, as she had no access to potentially infected poultry.
"Aside from the exposure to her father's respiratory secretions during her bedside care, the daughter had no definite exposure to poultry or other suspect sources of infection," said Chang-jun Bao, one of the Chinese scientists.
The research, however, said that the transmissibility of the virus remained "limited and non-sustainable," despite the evidence of person to person transmission.
"These findings suggest that potential genetic susceptibility might be one of the determinants and that avian influenza viruses... are more easily transmitted between individuals with genetic connection," the research also said.
The incident has alarmed health officials for the upcoming flu season.
There had been 133 cases of H7N9 bird flu in eastern China and 43 deaths by June 30. Those infected had visited live poultry markets or had contact with live poultry in a week or two before becoming sick.
Source: presstv.com
