Thus, while the COVID-19 pandemic has not yet become endemic, a new story emerges around human health that forces us to be alert, not feed the infodemic and take action.
With the collaboration of Mauricio Rodríguez, a doctor and professor at UNAM, a brief explanation is offered of what is currently happening with the H5N1 influenza (which has caused the death of millions of migratory, wild, and farm birds) and what the risks are. that exist to lead to a pandemic.
First, you have to understand basic things about influenza viruses:
Influenza viruses are part of a family called Orthomixuvirus, which also includes measles. Coronaviruses are not members of that clan. Influenza viruses have a relevant characteristic, which has to do with the fact that they can have many changes in their genome and also different proteins. Thus, influenza has many viral types with different impacts: H1N1, H1N2, H3N2, H7N9, H9N2…
So, there are some influenza viruses that only affect birds and others that only have the capacity to infect humans, but there are some intermediate hosts that are somewhat promiscuous, such as pigs, that can be infected with the virus from birds and also with that of the human being, in such a way that they can contain fragments of various viruses and be more dangerous.
That said, there is an influenza that occurs exclusively in the animal world, another in the human world, but there are also viruses that can do their thing in both.
H5N1 is lethal in birds and that has caused millions of birds to have already been slaughtered in various countries. But this virus has already jumped to the human being. For several years there have been cases of people infected with H5N1, mainly individuals who have had direct contact with infected birds (farm workers), but to date there has been no record of any case in which a person infected with H5N1 infect one more. If that were to happen, we could be witnessing a dark new chapter in public health.
Health alerts have already been issued in various parts of the world, including Mexico, considering that the amount of influenza in birds has been higher, that some birds and mammals that were not infected before (sea lions, foxes, minks) have been found. they have already been infected and it is particularly serious that migratory birds have a little more capacity to become infected, such as seagulls, which can reach open-air farms and spread their contagion.
In October 2022, the first case of a dead bird was found in the State of Mexico, as a result of the current outbreak of the H5N1 virus. However, Mexico has several elements that allow it to be prepared for a possible emergency: it has a well-articulated animal surveillance system, permanently monitors respiratory diseases in humans, counts and applies influenza vaccines to birds, among other measures.
At this time the impacts of this circumstance are in the economic field. According to an informative note provided by the National Agricultural Council, “so far only 5.9 million birds have been affected in Mexico, of which 5.2 million should be considered to be laying hens.” The national flock of laying hens is made up of 172 million birds and as a measure of attention, control and prevention of the presence of H5N1 avian influenza in Mexico, the poultry industry started a vaccination program in the flock of laying hens, mainly adding as of last January a total of 177 million doses.