In Colombia, no cases of highly pathogenic influenza in humans have been reported, so Tunja denied that a possible case of these was suspected.
Through a statement, the National Institute of Health reported that the city of Tunja is, to date, free of the AH5N1 and AH5N2 viruses, therefore, there have been no people affected with these pathologies.
“We invite the Tunja community to maintain biosafety measures, self-care, hand washing and proper use of masks in case of symptoms of respiratory infections,” said Diana López, Secretary of Territorial Health of Tunja.
And the member of Mayor Mikhail Krasnov’s cabinet added that in the case of children, refrain from taking them to school, take extreme care at home and if any complications arise, go to the emergency services and/or call line 123.
They added from the government of the capital of Boyacá that during the current year, 536 cases of unusual severe Acute Respiratory Infection (ARI) had been evaluated until last week, ruling out the presence of the AH5N1 and AH5N2 viruses.
In the latest report, the Colombian Agricultural Institute (ICA) reported 65 outbreaks of highly pathogenic influenza in birds during the years 2022 and 2023, located in various departments of the country. To date, all outbreaks have been closed and no new cases have been reported in 2024.
The general director of the INS, Giovanny Rubiano García, assured that no cases of influenza A(H5N1) have been confirmed in humans and highlighted the active community and institutional searches carried out in collaboration with the ICA.
For his part, Franklyn Prieto, director of public health surveillance at the National Institute of Health INS, emphasized the importance of surveillance at the animal-human interface to prevent the transmission of the virus.
Following the confirmation by the World Health Organization (WHO) of the first case of human death from the A(H5N2) virus in Mexico, the INS reaffirms its commitment to surveillance actions and the ‘One Health’ strategy to mitigate the risks associated with bird migration.
The INS calls on health professionals to intensify surveillance in cases of severe ARI, requesting the viral panel and notifying the surveillance system of any detection of non-typeable influenza A.
“From the Mayor’s Office of Tunja through the Territorial Health Secretariat, we are strengthening public health surveillance, actively searching for suspected cases of acute respiratory infection, activating contingency plans in coordination with the EPS and the IPS,” he stressed. Dr. Diana López.
