Russia notified WHO of possible tensions. A spokesman for Europe said in a statement on Saturday that if confirmed, H5N8 would infect people for the first time.
According to preliminary information there are reports of workers coming in contact with flocks of birds.
The spokesman said the workers were “asymmetrical and there were no human reports for the human transition.”
Speaking during a television briefing on Saturday, Anna Popova, head of Russia’s Federal Service for Surveillance Cons Consumer Rights Protection and Human Wellbeing, said the stress was seen in seven poultry farm workers in the south of the country, state news agency TASS reported.
Although not yet confirmed by the WHO, Russian health authorities have said they are in discussions with national officials to gather more information and “assess the public health impact” of the incident.
Avian flu usually affects only birds and has many different strains.
Most cases of human infection are due to contact with infected poultry or surfaces contaminated by the excretion of infected birds: saliva, nasal secretions or feces.
H5N8 outbreaks in farms in Germany, the Netherlands and the United Kingdom in 2014
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