A farm worker in Texas experienced an unusual symptom after being infected with the bird flu from an unusual source.
The man had no respiratory problems of the kind associated with an influenza infection, according to NBC News.
The individual in question was afflicted with bloodshot eyes.
Gruesome first photo of Texas dairy farm worker who caught bird flu from a cow shows how he suffered bleeding in his eyeballs
The photo shows how the virus caused blood vessels in his eyes to pop, leading to bleeding on the surface of his eyeballs. pic.twitter.com/bQwPLjsoXz
— SARS‑CoV‑2 (COVID-19) (@COVID19_disease) May 4, 2024
Doctors diagnosed the symptoms as being the products of broken blood vessels in both eyes.
The patient has been identified as a dairy worker, according to NBC.
According to a letter the New England Journal of Medicine, published Friday and signed by 19 doctors and researchers from the national Centers for Disease Control and Prevention, the Texas Department of State Health Services, and the Texas Tech University Bioterrorism Response Laboratory in Lubbock, Texas, testing showed the man's eye infection was consistent with bird flu which he appeared to have picked up from cows he worked with.
The patient never developed respiratory symptoms in the case -- which would be expected in most cases of influenza.
His case represents the first time a bird flu infection has been suspected from a cow to a human, NBC reported.
The patient went on to make a full recovery.
The case comes amid concern over the safety of the nation's meat supply chain, although the Department of Agriculture has expressed confidence in the safety of the beef it regulates.
The Department of Agriculture is testing beef for a bird flu virus following the infections of cattle in multiple states, though it says it remains confident the country’s meat supply is safe. https://t.co/FhVvuqKyql
— The Hill (@thehill) May 4, 2024
At least 36 different cases of avian flu outbreak have been detected in herds spread across nine states, according to the Department of Agriculture.
White House Press Secretary Karine Jean-Pierre dismissed concerns over the issue by citing her own vegetarianism in a news conference earlier this week.
In the 18th century: “Let them eat cake!”
Now: "What's your current assessment of the risk to the U.S. milk and meat supply from the bird flu epidemic in cattle?"
KARINE JEAN-PIERRE: "I don't consume any meat" pic.twitter.com/slcRxmtgeh
— Steve Guest (@SteveGuest) May 1, 2024
The Centers for Disease Control indicated that 25 people have been tested for bird flu in the wake of the outbreak, according to NBC News.
About 100 have been asked to self-monitor.
