It is a worrying development around the bird flu virus: according to a new American study, the pathogen can remain infectious for hours on milking machines. This means that H5N1 can infect not only cows, but also dairy workers. Immediate protective measures are required.
The bird flu virus is spreading rapidly in the US. Of particular concern: according to the CDC, four transmissions to humans have already been detected. Three of them were infected on dairy farms.
“Milking systems polluted for a long time”
“Our data indicate that dairy surfaces can remain contaminated for extended periods of time, increasing the risk of transmission from a sick animal to a human,” warns a study from the University of Pittsburgh School of Medicine and Emory University in Emerging Infectious Diseases. According to the CDC, H5N1 can adapt and spread from person to person through viral evolution.
Corona is just a ‘walk’ in comparison
Charité virologist Christian Drosten also has low expectations: he fears an approaching pandemic. Corona seems like a walk in the park in comparison, he warns. New Zealand Prime Minister Helen Clark also agrees: a bird flu pandemic could “potentially be even more catastrophic than Corona”. The world is not equipped for this, as experts recently showed in a technical report.
Dairy workers exposed to great danger
There are several sources of risk for employees in the dairy sector, ntv writes. During pre-milking, you can become infected, because the first milk flows are always expressed by hand. Employees can also be sprayed. This happens when the heads of the machines that are attached to the teats of the udders automatically come loose at the end of milking. Worryingly, milking often takes place at eye level with people, scientists point out. The pathogen then ends up in the mucous membranes of the employees via the contaminated milk.
Urgent measures needed
According to studies, H5N1 probably survives for at least an hour on stainless steel and for at least three hours on rubber, which is used to make teat cup hoses. According to experts, urgent measures are needed. Dairy workers are advised to wear face and eye protection and masks. To prevent the bird rib virus from spreading among cows, the teat liners on the milking machines must be carefully disinfected after each process.
Source: Krone
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