Written by Leah Douglas and Tom Polansek
(Reuters) – People hospitalized with influenza must be tested for avian influenza within 24 hours, the U.S. Centers for Disease Control and Prevention said on Thursday, in an expansion of its ongoing fight against human infections.
This recommendation aims to prevent delays in identifying human infections with avian influenza A (H5N1) viruses during high levels of seasonal influenza.
The risk to the general public from bird flu is low and there is no further evidence of human-to-human transmission, authorities said.
Patients testing positive for influenza A, especially those in intensive care, should be tested, ideally within 24 hours of admission, to determine the subtype of the virus, officials said.
Prior to Thursday's guidance, hospitals typically sent batches of samples to labs every few days for subtyping.
Speeding up testing is also aimed at allowing doctors to determine how people were infected and provide tests and medicines more quickly to close contacts if needed, the agency's chief deputy said. Director Nirav Shah said in a call with reporters.
Shah said he believes the CDC is not missing out on bird flu infections in people.
“The system is working properly,” Shah said, adding that health officials are seeking faster results in case public health measures are needed. “What we need to do is move to a system that tells us what's going on.”
Nearly 70 people, mostly farmworkers, have been infected with bird flu in the United States since April, as the virus circulates among poultry and dairy herds.
Most human infections are mild, but one death was reported in Louisiana last week.
The U.S. Department of Agriculture has more than 300 people fighting bird flu and is spending $1.5 billion on efforts to control the spread to poultry and dairy cattle, said Eric Deeble, the agency's deputy secretary.
The CDC announced last week that it would rebuild its stockpile of avian influenza vaccines for poultry.
Officials from the Department of Health and Human Services, which oversees the CDC, said in a press conference that they have repeatedly met with President-elect Donald Trump's transition team via Zoom (NASDAQ:) phone call and shared avian influenza preparedness documents.
Deeble said USDA officials have also met several times with the transition team to ensure a smooth handover of the agency's measures to curb the spread of the virus, including a tabletop exercise at the White House on Wednesday. He said he had it.
