Human cases of the bird flu are surging in China, despite having seemed to fall off the radar a bit in the past two years.
The H7N9 bird flu virus has led to hundreds of deaths in China over the past four years, according to Stat News.
The threat of this virus appeared to be declining among humans, but a recent resurgence of this flu during this winter season has alarmed health officials, with more than a third of the number of people diagnosed with the disease since it was first discovered in 2013, Stat News said.
“We’re concerned about the uncertainties here and the number of changes that are happening at this point,” said Dr. Daniel Jernigan, the director of influenza at the Centers for Disease Control and Prevention, according to Stat News. “We are monitoring this closely.”
China has reported 460 cases of H7N9 infections in humans since October, according to Reuters.
“Constant change is the nature of all influenza viruses — this makes influenza a persistent and significant threat to public health,” said Wenqing Zhang, the leader of the World Health Organization’s influenza program, according to Reuters.
Despite the recent surge, the WHO said there’s no evidence showing any changes in the characteristics of these infections.
The age and gender of those falling victim to the bird flu hasn’t wavered since it was first detected four years ago, Reuters noted.
As a result, the WHO said patients will likely undergo the same types of treatment that have been exercised in past cases of the virus.
According to the Financial Tribune, there were more than 190 human cases of the bird flu last month, which resulted in 79 fatalities.
The virus is expected to continue in China at least through the spring season.
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