Washington Man Contracts Rare H5N5 Bird Flu in First-Ever Human Case Confirmed in the U.S.
A rare strain of bird flu known as H5N5 has infected a man in Washington state, marking the first time this subtype has been detected in a human. Health officials confirmed that the patient became “severely ill” earlier this month, presenting with high fever, confusion and respiratory distress before hospital admission.
A Washington man becomes the first confirmed human case of H5N5 bird flu in the U.S., prompting an investigation as health officials report low public risk.
This is a close-up of the H5N1 virus, which differs slightly from the H5N5 virus that recently infected a man in Washington state.
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The Washington State Department of Health described the man as “older” with “underlying health conditions.” Officials reported that he kept a mixed backyard flock of domestic poultry at his home in Grays Harbor County on the state’s southwest Pacific coast, where his birds lived near areas accessible to wild ducks and geese.
Two of his domestic birds recently died, according to reporting from the Washington Post. The Department of Health stated that exposure likely came from either the backyard flock or wild birds that frequented the property. The man remained hospitalized as the investigation progressed last week.
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Washington health authorities and the Centers for Disease Control and Prevention reported that the broader public risk remains low. No additional H5N5 infections have been identified, and there is currently no evidence of person-to-person transmission. Experts noted that viral evolution can be unpredictable but emphasized that surveillance continues.
H5N1 remains the more common avian influenza subtype detected in the United States, though it is still considered rare. The two strains differ by a protein on the virus’s surface. H5N1 has circulated nationally since 2022, affecting wild birds, domestic poultry, dairy cattle and, on occasion, humans.
Health agencies have recorded 71 human cases of H5 bird flu in the U.S. since 2024. Most have involved mild illness, though a Louisiana patient died in January after raising backyard chickens that had been exposed to wild birds.
