NewsDesk  @infectiousdiseasenews

The Health Bureau in Macao reported four additional H9N2 avian influenza cases in Mainland China in late 2021. The four cases one male and three females, aged from 3 to 14 years old. Two were  from Huanggang City, Hubei Province, one from Nanning City, Guangxi Zhuang Autonomous Region, and one from Zhenjiang City, Jiangsu Province. All four were mildly ill; all had contact with poultry or visited live poultry markets before the onset of symptoms.

Image/pavlofox

Since 1998, China has reported 87 laboratory-confirmed cases of human infection with avian influenza A(H9N2) viruses.

In most human cases of H9N2 avian flu, the associated disease symptoms have been mild and there has been no evidence of human-to-human transmission. Influenza A(H9N2) viruses are enzootic in poultry populations in parts of Africa, Asia and the Middle East.

Most human cases are exposed to the A(H9N2) virus through contact with infected poultry or contaminated environments. Human infection tends to result in mild clinical illness.