United States: According to CDC, laboratories all over the United States have been implored to determine if patients admitted in hospitals with flu that is considered seasonal also have the bird flu virus. The new guidance needs outcomes to be produced within twenty-four hours from the patient’s admission, as reported by NBC News.
Delays in Testing Hamper Timely Tracking of Bird Flu
CDC wants faster testing for bird flu in hospitals.https://t.co/wLHf1HznKe
— R-E-A-L-I-T-Y (@mihareality) January 17, 2025
Last year, CDC suggested that people be tested for bird flu, however, long wait times for lab results has hampered surveillance for the virus. Hospitals often send many flu samples in one batch, the patients might be released before the results at that point it becomes cumbersome to look for the source of the infection.
Change in Testing Strategies for Enhanced Real-time Assessment
Read "CDC calls for testing hospitalized flu patients to determine whether they have bird flu" on SmartNews: https://t.co/1tWYjuAy6V #SmartNews
— Michael Drysch (@HalfCourtMikeD) January 17, 2025
The CDC now mentions that the testing strategy must be changed – in other words, the clinical laboratories should give faster tests that more accurately portray today’s flu levels. Dr. Nirav Shah, the CDC’s principal deputy director pointed out that more rapid testing is instrumental in identifying individuals with the virus and isolation or preventive treatment of those who have come into contact with infected ones.
Risk Remains Low for the General Public
CDC urges faster testing for bird flu amid growing outbreak https://t.co/PBtbbpjTZi via @medical_xpress
— DixieDawgsfan1989🇺🇸🐶 (@F4SuperBugfan89) January 17, 2025
The threat of bird flu (H5N1) remains pressing as it affects dairy cows and poultry, although people can still contract it, but rarely. Almost all the reported human cases were relatively mild and the only death recorded was in a man with other associated ailments. According to the CDC, there are 67 cases of human bird flu, 83, 000 flu samples were analyzed the last year.
Ongoing Flu Activity and Vigilance Needed
Flu activity is higher than usual across the U.S., particularly in states like Louisiana, New Mexico, Oregon, and Tennessee. The CDC’s new testing guidance focuses on influenza A, which includes both seasonal flu and the bird flu strain, H5N1. Although human-to-human transmission has not been observed, the CDC urges heightened awareness, particularly among those in close contact with livestock and poultry, as reported by NBC News.
CDC urges faster testing to find human bird flu cases https://t.co/rd4KZxMfaB
— JacqT (@jptrib1) January 17, 2025
Experts like Dr. Alex Greninger from the University of Washington Medical Center support the CDC’s new testing guidance, calling it a step toward better preparedness. The CDC is committed to ensuring that labs are properly reporting bird flu cases and enhancing overall disease monitoring systems to respond to potential outbreaks.
Leave a Reply