With the spread of bird flu, or H5N1 virus, to dairy cattle, new research from the University of Pittsburgh School of Medicine and Emory University in the journal Emerging Infectious Diseases shows that the virus remains stable on commercial milking equipment for at least one hour, increasing its potential to infect people and other animals.
With the spread of bird flu, or H5N1 virus, to dairy cattle, new research from the University of Pittsburgh School of Medicine and Emory University in the journal Emerging Infectious Diseases shows that the virus remains stable on commercial milking equipment for at least one hour, increasing its potential to infect people and other animals.
“Our data supports that milking equipment surfaces can stay contaminated for a long time, increasing the potential spread from a sick animal to a person,” said lead author Valerie Le Sage, research assistant professor of microbiology and molecular genetics with Pitt’s Center for Vaccine Research.
“These findings underscore the importance of face shields, masks and eye protection, and enhanced sanitization of equipment between cows to reduce the risk to workers and to minimize the spread between the animals.”
To understand the potential for spread from cattle to dairy farm workers, researchers looked at the stability of infectious flu virus particles in unpasteurized milk droplets on metal and rubber components of commercial milking equipment.
Read more at University of Pittsburgh
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