Student, 21, dies of bird flu strain already in UK and US days after noticing a new cough

A STUDENT in Vietnam has died of bird flu just days after noticing a new cough.

The 21-year-old tested positive for the highly pathogenic avian influenza strain H5N1, which has already been found in the UK and the US.

While the virus typically only affects birds, it can be transmitted to mammals, including humans.

Fears that a bird flu pandemic is “dangerously close” have escalated after a person in the US caught the disease from a cow, suggesting H5N1 is becoming better at spreading.

Just one month before he fell ill, the young man had gone wild bird trapping.

However, investigations found no evidence of sick or dead birds in the area he visited.

The man developed a cough and fever on March 11 and tried to self-medicate at home, according to the country’s Department of Preventive Medicine.

A week later, he showed up at hospital, where he was diagnosed with pneumonia. He died shortly afterwards.

“Due to the serious progression of the disease, the patient died on March 23,” the health officials wrote in a translated statement.

Close contacts of the student are having their health “monitored daily,” they added.

“To date, no new cases have been detected,” it read.

It comes just as Vietnam recorded its first human case of H9 avian flu in a 37-year-old man.

The strain is considered to be less likely to cause severe illness or lead to death than the H5N1 strain.

However, the man, who fell unwell on March 6 was hospitalised just a week after his symptoms emerged after developing pneumonia.

Mutation fears

There are many different bird flu strains, but the four of highest concern are H5N1, H7N9, H5N6 and H5N8, according to the NHS.

Some 887 people have been infected with H5N1 in the past 20 years – and over half (462) of these died.

There is still no evidence that bird flu can be transmitted between people.

However, experts fear the sheer scale of the current spread could give the virus more opportunities to mutate, enabling H5N1 to better spread and jump between in humans.

Over the last few months, the virus has been detected in lots of animals, including penguins, a polar bear, foxes – and more recently, cows.

The new US case, discovered in Texas, spurred an emergency briefing attended by bird flu researchers, doctors and officials from government agencies.

Dr Suresh Kuchipudi, a bird flu researcher in Pittsburgh, warned: “This virus [has been] on the top of the pandemic list for many, many years and probably decades.

“And now we are getting dangerously close to this virus potentially causing a pandemic,” MailOnline reported.

Prof James Wood, from the University of Cambridge and Co-Director of Cambridge Infectious Diseases, suggested, however, that this case by itself is not a cause for concern.

“The finding of a single human case in the US does not indicate that the virus is about to become a human pandemic,” he told the Sun.

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What is the UK doing about it?

There is no human bird flu jab on the market, but the UK government is said to be drawing up plans to stockpile regular flu vaccine in case of a pandemic.

It would be the first time it has been done for the disease, regarded as a top threat for the next global health emergency.

There have been five confirmed cases of bird flu in the UK since 2022.

The risk appears higher in the Far East, with two deaths in Cambodia and at least one “cluster” of cases that raised fears of human-to-human transmission.

In government guidance issued last month, Brits were advised to stay at least two meters away from wild birds because of bird flu fears.

People should avoid all contact with wild birds, which includes pigeons, swans, and seagulls, UK Health Security Agency (UKHSA) officials said.