A third human case of avian influenza (HPAI) A (H5N1), associated with the ongoing multi-state outbreak amongst dairy cows in the US, has been detected in a Michigan dairy farm worker.

According to the Johns Hopkins Center for Health Security, the individual – who had respiratory and eye symptoms – was in close contact with infected cows. The person worked on a different farm to the one where the previously infected worker was identified.

The presence of respiratory symptoms increases the possibility of onward transmission, although there are still no signs of human-to-human transmission related to these cases.

Last week, the US CDC said it is preparing for the “possibility of increased risk to human health” from highly pathogenic avian influenza A(H5N1).

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