A Texas resident was diagnosed with an "extremely rare" case of bird flu, after coming into contact with dairy cattle, state officials announced on Monday.
"The patient, who experienced eye inflammation as their only symptom, was tested for flu late last week with confirmatory testing performed by the Centers for Disease Control and Prevention over the weekend," the Texas Department of State Health Services said in a press release. "The case does not change the risk for the general public, which remains low."
Avian influenza or H5N1 is a form of the flu that typically infects wild birds. Its symptoms can range from extremely mild to deadly and a recent wave has killed millions of birds as well as endangered mammals, including at least one polar bear.
The Texas infection comes just one week after federal officials warned that dairy cattle, in multiple states, had contracted the virus.
"The cattle infections do not present a concern for the commercial milk supply," the DSHS wrote in a statement. "Dairies are required to destroy or divert milk from any sick cows, plus pasteurization kills avian flu viruses."
This is the second instance of a human contracting H5N1 flu in the United States and the first that was linked to dairy cattle, according to the Centers for Disease Control and Prevention. The patient is reportedly being treated with the antiviral drug oseltamivir.
The DSHS said that it was working with dairies to establish protocols that will minimize exposure and prevent the spread of disease.
