A Washington state resident has been hospitalized with a strain of bird flu never before confirmed in a human. Health officials said the patient is an older adult with underlying conditions. They became ill in early November with high fever, confusion, and severe breathing problems. Doctors in Grays Harbor County first treated them before transferring them to a specialist hospital in King County near Seattle.

Tests later showed the patient had H5N5, a bird flu strain previously found only in animals. Until now, all US human infections involved H5N1. Experts said the H5N5 case shows how bird flu continues to change, but there is no sign that this strain spreads more easily or causes more serious disease.

This is the first human bird flu case in the US in eight months and the first reported in Washington state this year. Since 2022, seventy-one Americans have been infected, and one person in Louisiana has died. Health officials emphasized that the risk to the public remains low.

The patient keeps a backyard flock and had recent contact with wild birds. Two birds in the flock died a few weeks before the illness, though the rest appear healthy. Public health teams tested people who had close contact with the patient, and no other infections were found.

Bird flu continues to circulate in domestic poultry, dairy herds, and migrating wild birds. Federal and state officials are watching for any changes in the virus. The CDC says the risk to the general public remains low but stresses the importance of continued monitoring.