China Reports First H5N6 Bird Flu Death in Middle-Aged Man

On Tuesday, the official Xinhua news agency reported the world's first case of human infection and death from the H5N6 bid flu virus subtype. The victim was a 49-year-old Chinese man from Nanchong in the southwestern province of Sichuan.

The H5N6 strain is believed to be a low-pathogenic bird flu virus previously found in Germany, Sweden, and the United States. Flu strains are a burdensome ailment, but they are typically dangerous for only certain people, including those with asthma, diabetes, heart disease, HIV/AIDS, cancer, as well as adults over the age of 65, pregnant women, and children under five years of age.

The H5N6 bird flu strain has been used for a vaccine in poultry and was found before in migratory birds in Taiwan. Prior to the man's death, reports said that he was exposed to dead poultry and was diagnosed with pneumonia, but further tests revealed he was infected with the H5N6 strain.

Despite this rare and dangerous case, health officials say that the risk of human-to-human transmission is low. Those who came into contact with the 49-year-old man showed no symptoms of the virus after undergoing tests and observation. But bird flu strains have not been uncommon in China, especially recently.

In March 2013, China reported the first H7N9 case in humans, which has since killed 115 people. Then in May of 2013, a 20-year-old woman became the first to be infected with the H6N1 bird flu strain. The most recent case occurred in December, when a 73-year-old woman died from the H10N8 virus, further worrying health officials that bird flu strains might be spreading among humans.

The poultry markets in China are believed to be the reason that bird flus are being spread to humans. The markets aren't the most sanitary and some poultry can be sickened due to contaminated environments. The air pollution issue Beijing is dealing with can also play a role in the poultry's health.

ProMED-mail is the online reporting system of the International Society for Infectious Diseases, which reported the H5N6 bird flu-related death on Monday.

You can read more about the H5N6 bird flu strain as well as other bird flu strains in this Yahoo! News article.