Russia announced on Saturday that it has identified the first cases of H5N8 avian influenza in humans, according to multiple reports.
Anna Popova, the country’s head of public health, said in television commentary that seven cases were detected in workers at a poultry farm in southern Russia, Bloomberg News reportedAuthorities have reported information on the cases to the World Health Organization (WHO).
Popova said the workers had mild cases and recovered. The poultry farm was the site of an outbreak among birds in December, Bloomberg noted.
“It is not passed from person to person. But only time will tell how quickly future mutations will make it possible to overcome this barrier, ”she said, according to the news report. “The discovery of this species now gives all of us, around the world, the time to prepare for possible mutations and the ability to respond in a timely manner and develop test systems and vaccines.”
In a statement to The Hill, the WHO said it has been “notified by the Russian Federation of human infection with avian influenza H5N8 through international health regulatory mechanisms.”
“Preliminary information indicates that the reported cases involved workers exposed to bird flocks. They were asymptomatic and no further human-to-human transmission was reported. If confirmed, this would be the first time that H5N8 has infected humans”, the statement said. “We are in talks with national authorities to gather more information and assess the public health implications of this event.”
Reuters noted that outbreaks of the strain have occurred in Europe, China, the Middle East and North Africa in recent months, but only in poultry.
Updated 2:30 pm