Russia has notified the WHO of the possible strain. “If confirmed, this would be the first time H5N8 has infected humans,” a WHO Europe spokesman said in a statement Saturday.
According to preliminary information, the reported cases were workers exposed to bird flocks, the statement said.
The workers were “asymptomatic and no further human-to-human transmission was reported,” the spokesman said.
During a televised briefing on Saturday, Anna Popova, the head of Russia’s Federal Office for the Supervision of the Protection of Consumer Rights and Human Welfare, said that tension had been identified among seven workers at poultry farms in the south of the country, reports the state. reported agency TASS.
While still unconfirmed by WHO, the Russian health authority has said it is in talks with national authorities to gather more information and “assess the public health implications” of the incident.
Avian flu usually only affects birds and there are many different types.
Most cases of human infection are due to contact with infected poultry or surfaces contaminated with feces from infected birds: saliva, nasal secretions or feces.
In 2014, an H5N8 outbreak infected poultry on farms in Germany, the Netherlands and the United Kingdom.