Close X
Friday, November 22, 2024
ADVT 
National

Lab confirms Canada's first case of avian flu infection in humans in B.C.

Darpan News Desk The Canadian Press, 13 Nov, 2024 04:39 PM
  • Lab confirms Canada's first case of avian flu infection in humans in B.C.

Canada's Public Health Agency has confirmed that a British Columbia teenager hospitalized last Friday is the country's first ever human case of domestically acquired avian flu.

The agency said in a statement Wednesday that testing at Canada's National Microbiology Laboratory in Winnipeg confirms the teen did contract the H5N1 avian flu, the same strain related to viruses found in B.C. flocks in an ongoing outbreak at poultry farms.

The teenage patient was said to be in critical condition on Tuesday after being admitted days before to B.C. Children's Hospital, and a spokesman from the office of B.C.'s provincial health officer said Wednesday that they are not aware of any change to that status.

"Our heart goes out to the teenager who is sick," Dr. Theresa Tam, Canada's chief public health officer, said in an interview with The Canadian Press.

"It's just a reminder that H5N1 can cause a range of illnesses all the way from asymptomatic to severe outcomes, and that we need to take this virus seriously, even if it's a sort of zoonotic transmission from animal to human because it can cause a severe outcome in the individual who's infected," Tam said. 

The public health agency said it was notified by B.C. health authorities on Saturday that the teenager tested presumptive positive for the avian flu, and Tam said field epidemiologists are looking at potential sources for the teen's exposure. 

The investigation "could take some time," she said, because they haven't been able to directly ask the teenager about where they might have become infected.

"We are unable to speak to the patient because the patient is quite sick," Tam said. "And so, I think some of the information is necessarily second-hand from the family members.

"The good news is up to now, none of the close contacts like family members have tested positive.”

A statement from the agency added that Canadians "must remain vigilant" in the fight to prevent the spread of avian flu between animals and humans.

B.C. Provincial Health Officer Dr. Bonnie Henry said at the news conference Tuesday that the teen, who is from the Fraser Health region, was "experiencing acute respiratory distress" while at B.C. Children's Hospital.

The teen did not have any pre-existing conditions that would explain the severity of the illness, and Henry said the patient did not live on a farm or have contact with commercial poultry flocks. The source of the infection may never be found, she said. 

There was one previous case of avian flu in humans in Canada in 2014 in Alberta. The infected person eventually died. Health officials determined in that case that the victim likely contracted the virus while travelling in China.

B.C.'s commercial poultry sector has been damaged by avian flu outbreaks in recent years, with about 6.4 million birds in domestic flocks having been culled since the spring of 2022.

Most of the outbreaks reported in the last few months in B.C. have been in the Fraser Valley, located within the Fraser Health region.

MORE National ARTICLES

Swearing-in ceremonies at B.C. legislature mark start of new political season

Swearing-in ceremonies at B.C. legislature mark start of new political season
The two Greens — lawyer Rob Botterell, representing Saanich North and the Islands, and geological engineer Jeremy Valeriote, of West Vancouver-Sea to Sky, who were elected on Oct. 19 in a tight election race — could play pivotal roles in the legislature, where Premier David Eby's New Democrats hold a slim one-seat majority.

Swearing-in ceremonies at B.C. legislature mark start of new political season

Trump's appointees have criticized Trudeau, warned of border issues with Canada

Trump's appointees have criticized Trudeau, warned of border issues with Canada
Donald Trump's second administration is filling up with some of his most loyal supporters and many of the people landing top jobs have been critical of Prime Minister Justin Trudeau and security at Canada's border. One expert says there are not many Canadian allies, so far, in the president-elect's court.

Trump's appointees have criticized Trudeau, warned of border issues with Canada

RCMP say three men arrested in B.C. have ties to Mexican drug cartels

RCMP say three men arrested in B.C. have ties to Mexican drug cartels
RCMP federal investigators have arrested three men in British Columbia they believe are connected to a transnational organized crime group connected to Mexican drug cartels bringing cocaine into Canada. They say officers also seized 23 firearms, several thousand rounds of ammunition and "multi-kilos of illicit drugs" from a home in Surrey, B.C.

RCMP say three men arrested in B.C. have ties to Mexican drug cartels

3 charged in a drug operation in Richmond

3 charged in a drug operation in Richmond
Police in Metro Vancouver say three people have been charged after a multi-year investigation into an alleged drug trafficking operation in Richmond. R-C-M-P say the probe began in November 2021, and searches at multiple properties in that city, as well as Vancouver, turned up some 15-hundred tablets of alleged M-D-M-A as well as 3.6 kilograms of methamphetamine.

3 charged in a drug operation in Richmond

Report details anti-Black racism in the public service, calls for commissioner

Report details anti-Black racism in the public service, calls for commissioner
A government-funded report says Black executives within the public service are subjected to harassment and intimidation, career stagnation, unjust workloads and, as one executive wrote, a "cesspool of racism." Lawyer Rachel Zellars, who authored the report for the Black Executives Network, wrote that the interviews she conducted with 73 participants were the "most distressing" she has witnessed and recorded. Of the 73 people she interviewed, 63 are current employees.

Report details anti-Black racism in the public service, calls for commissioner

Feds launching research institute for AI safety

Feds launching research institute for AI safety
The federal government is opening a research centre that will study the dangers posed by artificial intelligence technology. Industry Minister François-Philippe Champagne announced the launch of the Canadian Artificial Intelligence Safety Institute in Montreal on Tuesday. He said the centre will be important for building public trust in artificial intelligence technology.

Feds launching research institute for AI safety