High-path H7N8 outbreak reported at Indiana turkey farm…”hasn’t been seen in the United States before”
Lisa Schnirring
CIDRAP News
Jan 15, 2016
A highly pathogenic H7N8 avian influenza strain that hasn’t been seen in the United States before has struck a commercial turkey farm in southern Indiana, prompting the culling of about 60,000 birds, federal and state officials announced today.
The strain is different than the one that caused more than 200 outbreaks in US poultry last year and hasn’t caused any known human infections, according to a statement from the US Department of Agriculture (USDA) Animal and Plant Health Inspection Service (APHIS).
Turkey deaths prompted testing
Deaths in the flock triggered the testing at the Indiana Animal Disease Diagnostic Laboratory at Purdue University, and the USDA confirmed the findings today.
APHIS is assisting Indiana officials with the outbreak response, and state officials have quarantined the affected farm. Extra surveillance is under way at other farms near the outbreak location, which is in Dubois County.
T. J. Myers, DVM, PhD, associate deputy administrator for veterinary services at APHIS, said at a press conference today, “It is a highly pathogenic virus, which means it is a significant virus that does need an immediate response in order to contain it and prevent spread to other facilities. Since the outbreak last year, and all the lessons learned from that, there has been a lot of good work to increase our preparatory efforts at the federal side, the state side, and the industry side.
“So we are hopeful that as we respond very quickly to this virus, that we can get it contained and hopefully not see an extensive outbreak like we did last year. But, again, we’ll see how the days to come unfold.”
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