Non-Lethal H7N3 Bird Flu Reported In England

The British Health Protection Agency is reporting a case of the non-lethal bird flu, H7N3, in a worker from a poultry farm in eastern England.

H7N3 does not easily transfer between humans, which is also true of the more lethal form, H5N1, which has led the HPA to state that the risk to others was “extremely limited.” Fortunately, the worker did not require hospitalization. His most severe symptom appears to be conjunctivitus which allaboutvision.com defines as: “Inflammation of the conjunctiva, characterized by a pink eye. The cause is either infectious or allergic; the term “pink eye” really refers to the viral variety, but is commonly used for any type of conjunctivitis. Other symptoms include burning, discharge, dryness, itching, light sensitivity, eye pain or discomfort, stickiness, tearing and chemosis.”

The last reported instance of H7N3 in Britian was in 1979. Its symptoms typically include flu-like symptoms and conjunctivitus.

The infected worker and all ohers on the poultry farm are being vaccinated and closley monitored and 35,000 birds on the farm are being slaughtered to insure containment.

British poultry worker contracts H7N3 bird flu