Doctors concerned about potential spread of bird flu in Canada

H5N1 or avian flu has been detected at dozens of U.S. dairy farms and Canadian experts are urging surveillance on our side of the border too.

H5N1 or avian flu has been detected at dozens of dairy farms in the United States and Canadian experts are urging surveillance on the north side of the border.

“We should be actively looking for it,” said Dr. Isaac Bogoch, infectious diseases specialist at Toronto’s University Health Network.

Bogoch says the number and diversity of mammals that have been affected by H5N1 this year has jumped dramatically.

“If more mammals are infected, the virus can obviously change and be more readily transmitted between mammals,” warns Bogoch.

Matthew Miller, from the McMaster Immunology Research Centre in Hamilton, says the mechanism that kept bird flu mainly in birds has suddenly made the transition to spread more readily in mammals, ranging from dogs and cats, cows, goats and sea lions.

But does that mean it will inevitably become widespread in humans?

“No, It’s not inevitable” says Miller. “But the risk, I would say, is profound.”