B.C. provincial health officer Dr. Bonnie Henry said the teen infected with H5N1 avian flu remains in critical condition in Children’s Hospital.
Henry said the teen is “stable” and has made some progress in the past few days, but is still “very sick.”
She said they are hopeful the teen will recover.
In addition, Henry said 34 health-care workers were exposed to avian flu but there have been no additional human cases of H5N1 avian flu.
On. Nov. 13, the Public Health Agency of Canada confirmed that a teen in B.C. Children’s Hospital was infected with a human case of avian influenza — also known as bird flu — caused by influenza A(H5N1) virus in Canada.
This is the first domestically acquired human case of H5N1 avian influenza.
It is not yet known how the teen contracted the virus but Henry said one potential source of the exposure was a pet dog that was sick at the time of the onset of illness to this child.
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“This dog was thoroughly investigated with every test possible and we consulted with colleagues across Canada and the U.S.,” Henry said.
“There have been only two known cases of canine H5 in the world, so there is a lot yet we don’t yet know about how this virus might present in a dog.”
Henry said there was an additional follow-up at the vet and the home where the dog was prior to adoption, and all humans and other animals in those places tested negative for H5N1.
“Having said that, all of the additional testing that was done, including samples from many different parts of this dog, all of them have been negative for H5 influenza.”
She also said there was no exposure at the teen’s school.
Henry did caution that they may never know where the teen was exposed to the virus or where it came from.
She said the teen was healthy prior to infection.
“We are not able to talk to them directly about where the exposure may have happened,” Henry said. “In the absence of being able to talk directly to this teen, we may not ever know for certain where they were exposed and where it came from. This is not unheard of.
“Our investigation, our detailed public health investigation is closed for now unless anything new arises, and I am very confident there are no additional cases out there right now, but we still need to be careful, and we need to watch and think about how do we prevent this from happening to anyone else.”
Human infection with avian influenza A(H5N1) is rare and usually occurs after close contact with infected birds, other infected animals or highly contaminated environments.
Henry said the public health team was able to identify the genotype of H5N1 – Clade B.2.3.4.4B, and Genotype D1.1.
“This is important because this clade and genotype is the same one that has been detected in wild birds here in British Columbia,” she said, “and also in the many poultry outbreaks we are experiencing here in premises across, particularly the Lower Mainland.”
Henry said there are now 54 outbreaks of avian flu on farms in B.C.
Now up to 54 outbreaks.
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