Human infection caused by avian influenza A(H5) - Ecuador
On 9 January 2023, WHO was notified of a human infection caused by an avian influenza A(H5) virus. The case, a nine-year-old girl, living in a rural area in the province of Bolívar, Ecuador, was in contact with backyard poultry, which was acquired a week before the onset of her symptoms, which died without apparent cause on 19 December 2022. She developed symptoms of conjunctivitis and a runny nose on 25 December 2022. On 30 December, due to the persistent symptoms including nausea, vomiting and constipation, she was admitted to a general hospital where empirical treatment for meningitis was started with antibiotics and antipyretics. On 3 January 2023, she was transferred to a pediatric hospital in critical condition where she was admitted to the intensive care unit (ICU) with septic shock and was treated with antivirals and mechanical ventilation due to pneumonia. She is currently hospitalized, in isolation.
This is the first reported case of human infection caused by avian influenza A(H5) virus in the Latin America and the Caribbean region.
