Health officials on Friday confirmed bird flu in a California child — the first reported case in a U.S. minor.

The child had mild symptoms, was treated with antiviral medication, and is recovering, the U.S. 

Centers for Disease Control and Prevention

&nbsp;(CDC) said in announcing the test results. State officials have said the child attends daycare and lives in Alameda County, which includes Oakland and surrounding communities, but released no other details.

The infection brings the reported number of U.S. bird flu cases this year to 55, including 29 in California, the CDC said. Most were farmworkers who tested positive with mild symptoms.

One exception was an adult in Missouri who did not work at a farm and had no known contact with an infected animal. It remains a mystery how that person was infected.&nbsp;

Health officials have said there was no evidence of it spreading between people.

What Canada does to monitor H5N1 avian flu

Livestock measures aim to keep virus out as hospitals and labs test patients with respiratory symptoms.

In this Nov. 18, 2012 photo, a Canada goose takes off from a pond in Hutchinson, Kan. Bird flu has been found in more than 100 different species of wild birds but most are low pathogenic viruses _ they are present in the bird but do not sicken or kill it. Birds confirmed to have carried the virus currently spreading infection to domestic poultry in the United States include Canada Goose, other waterfowl and predatory birds. 

Bird Flu

A Canada goose takes off from a pond. H5N1 bird flu is a highly transmissible and usually mild disease in geese, swans and seagulls.

B.C. teen with avian flu is in critical condition, provincial health officer says

A teenager who tested positive for avian flu is in critical condition with acute respiratory distress according to Provincial Health Officer Dr. Bonnie Henry.

Bird flu particles, colorized microscope imagery.

Without swift intervention and active surveillance, the possibility of H5N1 infecting more humans — and gaining the last few fearsome adaptations allowing its onward spread — could start to rise dramatically, multiple scientists warn.

h5n1 virus

A teenager who tested positive for bird flu is in critical condition, B.C.'s provincial health officer said Tuesday.

 also was recently hospitalized with bird flu, Canadian officials have said.

H5N1 bird flu has been spreading widely in the U.S. among wild birds, poultry and other animals over the last few years.

It began spreading in U.S. dairy cattle in March. California has become the centre&nbsp;of that outbreak, with 402 infected herds detected there since August. That's 65 per cent&nbsp;of the 616 herds confirmed with the virus in 15 states.

How H5N1 avian flu went global — and what scientists are bracing for next

As far back as the 1990s, scientists warned a new form of avian influenza could spark another flu pandemic. It hasn't happened yet. But this year, there's an unprecedented outbreak in U.S. dairy cows, all while H5N1 virus keeps jumping to more species and putting humans in its crosshairs.

Drawing showing a farm worker, a dairy cow, and birds.

How H5N1 avian flu went global — and what scientists are bracing for next.

bird flu hero art

Officials said they were investigating how the child was infected. California health officials previously said in a statement that they were looking into a "possible exposure to wild birds."

There is no evidence bird flu spread from the child to other people.

People in the child's household reported having similar symptoms&nbsp;but their test results were negative for bird flu. Health officials noted the child and the household members also tested positive for other common respiratory viruses.

This colourized electron microscope image released by the National Institute of Allergy and Infectious Diseases shows avian influenza A H5N1 virus particles in yellow. 

Bird flu case confirmed in U.S. child, health officials say

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