Top in ID: US reports second case of H5N1 bird flu; FDA approves new antibiotic
A second person has tested positive for highly pathogenic avian influenza (H5N1), after being exposed to dairy cattle that were presumably infected with the virus.
The CDC considers the risk to the general public to be low, and USDA officials reported that testing by the National Veterinary Services Laboratories revealed no changes that would make the virus more transmissible to humans.
Richard Webby, PhD, a faculty member in the department of infectious diseases at St. Jude Children’s Research Hospital and director of the WHO Collaborating Centre for Studies on the Ecology of Influenza in Animals and Birds, told Healio, “It’s really difficult to know what this means in terms of human risk. People obviously have more exposure to cows than we do to wild mammals, but so far, there isn’t any evidence that the virus in cows is any more infectious to humans than the viruses in birds.”
It was the top story in infectious disease last week.
In another top story, the FDA approved the antibiotic ceftobiprole — marketed in the U.S. as Zevtera by Basilea Pharmaceutica — for staph bloodstream infections, acute bacterial skin and skin structure infections and community-acquired pneumonia. A request for the approval was first submitted 17 years ago.
Read these and more top stories in infectious disease below:
Q&A: What to know about bird flu in cattle, and the human case in Texas
A person in Texas tested positive for highly pathogenic avian influenza after having exposure to dairy cattle that are presumed to also be infected with the virus, health officials reported. Read more.
FDA approves antibiotic to treat three bacterial infections
The FDA approved the antibiotic Zevtera for the treatment of three bacterial infections 17 years after it was first submitted to the agency. Read more.
ID is having a ‘Wild West moment’ with AI
Artificial intelligence has emerged as a potentially important tool for patient care, including in infectious diseases. Read more.
Updated COVID-19 shots lower hospitalization risk in immunocompromised people by a third
Receipt of an updated COVID-19 vaccine lowered the risk for hospitalization among immunocompromised people by around one-third, according to a study. Read more.
Q&A: What to know about the increase in invasive meningococcal disease
The CDC alerted clinicians in the United States about a rise in invasive meningococcal disease caused by Neisseria meningitidis serogroup Y bacteria that could present with symptoms not typical of meningitis. Read more.