Bird Flu Detected in a Human for First Time in Iowa [Video]

By Cami Koons

The Iowa Department of Health and Human Services (HHS) announced Friday the state’s first human case of the highly pathogenic avian influenza. 

According to a press release from the department, the individual is a commercial poultry worker who was exposed by a flock in northwest Iowa. 

Earlier this week, the Iowa Department of Agriculture and Land Stewardship announced the 11th detection of the virus in poultry flocks this year, following a string of detections that began in early December. 

The press release did not say from which county the individual worked, but the bird flu has been detected in Sioux, Palo Alto, Sac, O’Brien Monona, and Worth counties this month. 

The HHS release said the individual reported mild symptoms, received “appropriate treatment” and is recovering. 

According to the U.S. Centers for Disease Control and Prevention(CDC), 64 cases have been detected in humans in the U.S., though the CDC website did not list the Iowa case as of Friday …