Frequently asked questions about bird flu transmitted to humans

How the disease spreads to humans, symptoms, virus survival time and safety when using poultry products are frequently asked questions about influenza A/H5.

Information recommended to the community by the Ho Chi Minh City Center for Disease Control.

Influenza A/H5 is a particularly dangerous acute infectious disease caused by a virus.

The disease is highly infectious in birds and poultry, occasionally infecting humans from animals. The disease is difficult to transmit from person to person.

Avian flu has the potential to cause complications and a high risk of death in humans.

How does influenza A/H5 spread to humans?

Avian influenza occurs in poultry species such as chickens, turkeys, ducks, geese, quails, pigeons, ostriches, wild birds and mammals, thereby infecting humans.

The disease is highly infectious in birds and poultry.

Most human infections involve close contact with live or dead poultry, or environments containing pathogens.

There is no evidence of the disease being transmitted to humans through properly prepared and thoroughly cooked food, nor of person-to-person transmission.

Symptoms of influenza A/H5 in humans?

Symptoms of infection may include:

• Fever (usually high fever above 38 degrees Celsius).
• Uncomfortable.
• Cough.
• Sore throat.
• Muscle pain.
• Other symptoms include abdominal pain, chest pain, and diarrhea.

- The disease has a risk of becoming severe and leading to death.

Where is the influenza A/H5 virus found?

Viruses are present in most internal organs of sick animals, and are found in feces and secretions such as nasal mucus and saliva of sick animals.

How long can the virus survive?

Viruses often live longer in the air at low humidity and in feces at low temperature and high humidity conditions. They can live up to 35 days in low-temperature cages, up to 3 months in infected poultry feces.

What are the signs that indicate that poultry is sick?

Highly pathogenic avian influenza has a short incubation period, usually 1-3 days and can be longer depending on the virulence of the virus.

Chickens often show symptoms of not walking normally, being tired, and lying in groups. Symptoms include respiratory tract inflammation, eyelid swelling, and excessive tearing. Many chickens have swollen joints, swollen heads and faces, purple combs and wattles, and bleeding under the skin. Chickens also have diarrhea, thin white or greenish white stools.

Ducks often carry pathogens but rarely show clinical symptoms and are the main source of spreading pathogens into the environment.

Is it safe to use products from poultry and birds?

Using products from poultry and other birds is only safe when properly prepared and cooked because the virus is "sensitive" to temperature. Normal cooking temperatures will kill them.