Newswise — Matthew Frieman, PhD, Professor of Microbiology and Immunology at the University of Maryland School of Medicine, is available to comment on concerns about new cases of H5N1 virus or bird flu in the U.S.
Quote for publication to be attributed to Dr. Frieman:
“These cases are evidence of a continuing presence of H5N1 virus that can spread from animals to humans. We have seen it in people with direct contact with infected wild and domestic birds as well as cows. The sporadic cases in humans who have no known contact with infected birds is a major concern and shows that the virus is in places and in people that we are not detecting. The limited surveillance that is occurring in the US is a major public health problem. The longer we are in the dark about where the virus is and how many animals it has infected will lead to more chances for the H5N1 virus to mutate and spread to humans with increased transmissibility. We are in a precarious position for public health in the future for this outbreak and others should the budgets of the public health infrastructure continue to be cut.”
Please contact Deborah Kotz, [email protected], to request an interview.
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