The World Health Organization confirmed Wednesday the first-ever fatal case of a subtype of bird flu in Mexico.
It is the first laboratory-confirmed human case of the H5N2 strain of bird flu, or avian influenza, and the first-ever reported case in Mexico.
This strain is different than the bird flu strain that is currently circulating in livestock and has infected three dairy workers in the United States.
The World Health Organisation (WHO) at their headquarters in Geneva, Dec. 7, 2021.
Fabrice Coffrini/AFP via Getty Images, FILE
The Mexico patient was a 59-year-old resident with no history of exposure to poultry or other animals, according to the WHO.
On April 17, the patient developed fever, nausea, diarrhea, shortness of breath and general malaise. He was hospitalized on April 24 at the National Institute of Respiratory Diseases in Mexico City and died the same day.
The patient’s relatives said the person had underlying conditions and they had been bedridden for three weeks for other reasons prior to contracting bird flu, the WHO said.
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Test results eventually revealed the patient was infected with bird flu subtype H5N2, which has never been documented in humans before.
This is a developing story. Please check back for updates.
