GENEVA, Jan 7, CMC – A day after the United States reported its first human death from avian flu, the World Health Organization (WHO) insisted on Tuesday that the risk to the wider population remains “low”.
WHO spokesperson Dr. Margaret Harris told reporters that the H5N1 virus causing the disease is “not circulating in humans but jumping into humans” who are exposed to poultry or dairy cattle.
“We’re not seeing sustained circulation,” she insisted, noting that the man who died of the disease in Louisiana was over 65 and reportedly had underlying medical conditions.
According to the health authorities, he had been exposed to chickens and wild birds. Several dozen people in the US have contracted avian influenza – commonly referred to as bird flu – during the current outbreak, mainly farmworkers in close contact with poultry flocks and cattle herds.
Dr. Harris stressed that WHO’s assessment of the risk to the general population “is still low and remains set”. The main concern is for people who work in animal industries because they need to be better protected from infection.
The WHO spokesperson added that the United States was continuing to carry out “a lot of surveillance” in the human and animal population, “in the methods we use for farming, for our food production…all those things need to be combined because indeed it always does pose a risk”.
The Pan American Health Organization (PAHO) has launched an interactive dashboad to monitor avian influenza A(H5N1) cases in the Americas including the Caribbean.
“As concerns grow over the spread of this disease, the availability of accurate, real-time information is crucial for authorities to prepare, prevent new outbreaks, and protect public and animal health in the region,” PAHO said.
It said the data underscores the importance of regional and global collaboration to monitor the spread of zoonotic diseases like avian influenza A(H5N1) and mitigate its potential impact.
PAHO said that the dashboard is designed to improve access to data on outbreaks of the disease in birds, mammals, and humans, providing key information for public and animal health authorities.
The dashboard features tables and maps showing outbreaks in humans, as well as in domestic and wild birds and mammals across the region, the latter with data sourced from the World Organization for Animal Health (WOAH).
Meanwhile, a respiratory virus gaining ground in China, known as the human metapneumovirus, or hMPV, has been sparking media attention in recent weeks, but it does not represent a new or major threat, Dr. Harris said.
The UN health agency spokesperson said that such infections are on the rise in China “as expected during winter”, with seasonal influenza being “by far the most common among them”, as reported by the Chinese Center for Disease Control and Prevention.
“China’s reported levels of respiratory infections are within the usual range for the winter season. Authorities report that hospital utilization is currently lower than this time last year, and there have been no emergency declarations or responses triggered,” she added.
Dr. Harris said regarding hMPV, it was first identified in 2001 and “has been in the human population for a long time” adding it is a common virus that circulates in winter and spring and usually “causes respiratory symptoms similar to the common cold”.
Like any of the hundreds of common cold viruses known to exist, it can lead to more serious disease in patients with low immunity, particularly but not limited to newborns and the elderly.
Asked about hMPV’s mortality rate, Dr. Harris described it as “very, very low”.
“It is not a pathogen that normally leads to deaths in humans, save for the most vulnerable,” she said, recommending “simple” prevention measures, such as wearing a mask, improving ventilation of closed spaces and handwashing.
CMC/a/g/ir/2025