Health officials said on Saturday they have detected and confirmed the first suspected human case of H5 avian influenza and that the patient in question is a teenager from the Fraser Health region. Reports said that the teenager remains under care at BC Children’s Hospital as he remains positive for the H5 strain at the BC Centre for Disease Control’s Public Health Laboratory.
Additional samples were forwarded to the National Microbiology Laboratory in Winnipeg for further verification. The young one’s contacts are still under surveillance so that they could be evaluated on the onset of symptoms, with guidance on testing and preventive measures.
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The officials believe the possible exposure source comes from an “animal or bird”. Full-scale investigation is conducted to confirm in efforts, therefore this effort involves the members of Fraser Health, BC Centre for Disease Control, BC Children’s Hospital, Provincial Health Officer’s Office and the Ministry of Agriculture and Food.
It’s a very rare event,” provincial health officer Dr. Bonnie Henry said, extending sympathy to the teen and their family: “Our thoughts are with this young person and their family during this difficult time.” She also said that “although it is the first detected case of H5 in a person in B.C.”. or in Canada, there have been a small number of human cases in the U.S. and elsewhere, he said, putting stress on what he termed a “thorough investigation” to fully understand the source of exposure here in B.C.