The Mexican government hit back at the WHO for claiming one of its citizens had died of bird flu
The Mexican government has denied that one of its citizens died of H5N2 bird flu, contradicting claims from the WHO. The WHO claimed that the death of the Mexican man was the world’s first fatal case of bird flu in humans.
The head of the country’s Ministry of Health, Jore Alcocer, said in a press conference on Wednesday that the WHO’s announcement was “quite bad” and that the actual cause of death of the 59-year-old man, who died on April 24, had not been determined.
Alcocer stated that the man suffered from chronic kidney disease, type 2 diabetes and high blood pressure, all of which could have influenced or caused his death. He had been bedridden for weeks before dying.
The Health Secretary also reassured the Mexican people not to panic or to avoid consuming chicken in any form.
El titular de Salud, Jorge Alcocer, contradice a la #OMS: El hombre de 59 años murió por otras causas, no por gripe aviar A H5N2
No hay riesgo de comer pollo, dice pic.twitter.com/gE6nhnMDfM
— Manuel Lopez San Martin (@MLopezSanMartin) June 6, 2024
The press conference came on the same day as the WHO said the man died after developing nausea, shortness of breath and diarrhea. The man had not been exposed to poultry or other animals before developing his symptoms.
The organization also claimed that the case had been confirmed by a laboratory.
Amid widening fears about a possible bird-flu pandemic, countries around the world are stockpiling vaccines.
The US government is also poised to invest millions of dollars in the development of new vaccines to combat the virus. The US Biomedical Advanced Research and Development Authority (BARDA) is set to reach an agreement with Moderna to fund human trials for its experimental mRNA bird-flu vaccine. As part of the deal, the US government would commit to stockpiling millions of the vaccines if the human trials are successful.
Three human cases of bird flu have been reported in the US so far, all in dairy workers. None have reported serious symptoms and all have been treated with antiviral medication.
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