Officials in Washington confirmed that four agricultural workers have tested presumptively positive for avian flu, marking the first human cases of the disease in the state.
The workers had contact with infected poultry at an egg farm in Franklin County, located in the southern half of the state, according to the Washington Department of Health.
These individuals displayed mild symptoms and received antiviral medication. Additional workers at the farm are undergoing testing, so the total number of infected individuals may change.
Health officials recommend that any employees or contractors who have worked on a poultry farm in the Benton or Franklin area of Washington since October 7 and are experiencing symptoms like red eyes or respiratory infections should contact the health department at (509) 460-4550.
After a bird flu outbreak was confirmed by the Washington State Department of Agriculture on October 15, about 800,000 birds on the farm were euthanized, as stated by officials.
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Washington is now the sixth state to report a human infection of H5N1. California recently confirmed two additional human cases from an infected dairy farm, bringing the state’s total to 13.
According to the latest data from the Centers for Disease Control and Prevention, there have been 27 cases of human bird flu infections this year, excluding the recent cases in Washington.
Most cases have been among farm workers who had contact with infected animals, however, there was a rare and unusual case reported in Missouri where the infected individual had not been in contact with any infected animals.
Despite this, the CDC reassures that the public health risk remains low and they are closely monitoring the situation.
