The World Health Organization (WHO) warns The Netherlands Ministry of Health, Welfare and Sports reported a laboratory-confirmed case of infection with the influenza A (H1N1) virus variant (v). Pork is native to the Netherlands. The affected individuals have reportedly recovered and did not have any direct contact with the pigs.
The case was discovered during routine surveillance for respiratory diseases. As of September 7, there were no symptomatic contacts of this case, and no further test reports were found during daily monitoring. Five close contacts were tracked for a maximum incubation period of 10 days, and no one developed symptoms.
so, There is no evidence of human-to-human transmission and the case is considered a sporadic human case of influenza A (H1N1).. The potential for human-to-human community transmission and/or international spread of the disease through humans is considered low.
Influenza A (H1) viruses are circulating in swine herds in most parts of the world. When an influenza virus that normally circulates among pigs is detected in humans, it is called an “influenza virus variant.” H1N1, H1N2, and H3N2 are the predominant subtypes of swine influenza A viruses in pigs that occasionally infect humans, usually after direct or indirect contact with pigs or contaminated environments.
Human infection with virus variants often causes mild clinical disease, While some cases were hospitalized with more severe illness, some have died. Sporadic human infections caused by influenza A (H1N1v) and influenza A (H1N2v) viruses have been previously reported in the Netherlands, but there was no evidence of sustained human-to-human transmission.
This is the first human infection caused by influenza A H1N1 virus reported in the Netherlands in 2023, and the third human infection in the past five years. Nine cases of the human variant have been recorded in the Netherlands since 1986.
This was an adult from the province of Noord-Brabant with no underlying medical conditions or history of occupational exposure to animals. On August 20, the patient developed fatigue and general malaise. He developed acute respiratory infection the next day, with chills, sneezing, coughing, headache and general weakness, and then developed a fever on the 22nd.
On the 21st, as part of acute respiratory infection surveillance, the patient reported symptoms and the combined nasopharyngeal swab samples collected were sent to the laboratory. On the 22nd, the sample was sent to the Dutch National Influenza Center of the National Institute of Public Health, where it tested positive for influenza A virus and negative for influenza A H1N1pdm09, both of which were included in commercial acid amplification tests. Acids for 24 pathogens.