Mexico City [Mexico], April 6: Mexico has reported its first infection of the avian influenza virus H5N1, known as the bird flu, after the virus was detected in a 3-year-old child, the Mexican Health Authority reported on Friday.
The case was identified in the north-western state of Durango. The child is being treated in hospital.
The H5N1 avian influenza is currently widespread around the globe in wild birds, and numerous wild mammals have also been infected.
The World Health Organization (WHO) has reported 464 human deaths globally from the virus between 2003 and December 12, 2024.
Most of these occurred in Vietnam, Egypt, Indonesia and Cambodia up to and including 2019.
Since then, H5N1 fatalities have been relatively rare. In January, a person in the United States died for the first time following an infection.
Source: Qatar Tribune
