A child in Northern California suffering from mild respiratory symptoms is reported to have contracted bird flu, the health officials are now investigating. This has happened in the backdrop of the Bird Flu outbreak that happened in the US and has infected 53 people since April.

What Is Bird Flu?

Bird flu primarily infected farmworkers or those in close proximity to livestock. The first human bird flu case in the US was reported in 2022, to a person who was also involved in farm-working. While this flu is largely confined to birds in the wild and poultry, recent outbreaks have been reported in mammals too, including cattle.

Common Symptoms

Common symptoms include high temperature, chills, body pain, cough and cold, and difficulty in breathing. It is also common to experience gastronomical symptoms like diarrhoea, stomach pain, sickness, chest pain, and nose and gum bleeding.

Prevention

• Avoid contact with infected birds or with poultry altogether
• Practice good hygiene
• Cook poultry thoroughly
• Use protective gear
• Stay informed

Steps to handle poultry safely

Pasteurisation and cooking them at high temperatures can curb the threat. It is also important to handle your poultry products when you are buying and storing them.

Also, avoid drinking raw milk to kill avian influenza A(H5N1).

Handle chicken while shopping: The meat juice can spill over and contaminate other food items, therefore it is extremely important to store it properly, in a way that it does not contaminate another food item. Always store it in a cool bag when you are transporting it and refrigerate and freeze the meat for the first two hours of buying.

You must also cook your chicken so the viruses do not survive on the chicken.

Handle Eggs And Consume It Safely: Flu viruses can infect chicken eggs by entering through the eggshell. The eggshells are smaller than the pores of eggshells, which means viruses can enter the eggs and the egg's surface will still be protected. However, it is still important to handle it safely.

As per the US Food and Drug Administration, cooking poultry, eggs and other animal products to the proper temperature and preventing cross-contamination between raw and cooked food.

What Is Happening In The US?

The first person in the United States to come into contact with bird flu was a resident of Missouri. The US Department of Agriculture (USDA) on Wednesday announced the first confirmed case of H5N1 avian influenza in a pig. The case was confirmed on September 7.

Later on October 30, the US Department of Agriculture (USDA) confirmed the first case of H5N1 avian influenza in a pig. The infected pig was part of livestock, mixed with poultry on a backyard farm, however, the pig showed no signs of illness. It was found out as a part of a routine precautionary test, along with four other swine. When these five pigs were tested, one of them came out positive, two negative, and the other two were pending. "The livestock and poultry on this farm shared water sources, housing and equipment in other states, this combination has enabled transmission between species," read the release by USDA.

Now, 15 states in the US are facing this outbreak. Hawaii reported its first outbreak on November 17 is a backyard flock of 70 birds in Honolulu County on Oahu island. California is hit by outbreaks in dairy cows and poultry and has three more outbreaks in three different counties.

Minnesota and Washington also reported outbreaks in backyard poultry, with Minnesota's Martin County being the first one to face the outbreak since July. The Animal and Plant Health Inspection Service (APHIS) reported more than 100 H5N1 detections in wild birds, most from the western states. These were found in Illinois, Kansas, and Minnesota. The list also included Florida's Brevard County. Amid the outbreak, the Pennsylvania Department of Agriculture also announced a mandatory bulk milk tank testing. So far, there are no outbreaks reported in the dairy farm there. The list of unaffected dairy farms includes Arkansas, Oklahoma, and Massachusetts.

Think about that fleeting moment when you get up after sitting or lying down—your head spins, your heart pounds, maybe you feel lightheaded or nauseated. If this scene has become all too familiar, you might be dealing with postural orthostatic tachycardia syndrome—POTS. It’s rare, but for the 1–3 million people in the U.S. who have it, it’s daily life. Now, a heart failure drug is showing real promise in taming the symptoms.

Ivabradine isn’t new—it’s been used for years to manage chronic heart failure, slowing the heart without dropping blood pressure. But a new pilot study, published in the Journal of Cardiovascular Pharmacology, suggests this drug might be a breakthrough for POTS patients. Researchers from UVA Health and Virginia Commonwealth University treated 10 young adults (average age 28, most of them women) with the drug. Normally, when these patients stood, their heart rates surged by around 40 beats per minute. After ivabradine? The spike shrank to only 15 bpm. And symptoms like faintness dropped by nearly 70%, chest pain by 66%—the difference wasn’t just physiological, it was life-changing.

Dr. Antonio Abbate from UVA Health called the findings compelling: cutting heart rate alone—without affecting blood pressure—appeared to break the chain of symptoms. “The inappropriate increase in heart rate is exactly why patients feel sick,” he said.

UVA Health Newsroom

What Is POTS?

Postural orthostatic tachycardia syndrome may sound technical, but its components describe the experience: "postural" (related to posture), "orthostatic" (standing upright), "tachycardia" (a fast heart rate), and "syndrome" (a bundle of symptoms). When someone with POTS stands, their autonomic system fails to constrict blood vessels effectively. The result? Blood tanks into the legs, the heart overcompensates, and you get hit by symptoms: dizziness, pounding heart, fatigue, brain fog, chest discomfort, sweating, nausea—anything but ordinary.

This isn’t a heart-muscle issue or a brain problem: it’s more like a software glitch in how your body regulates itself. It often affects young women between 15 and 50 and can stem from triggers like infections, trauma, pregnancy, or autoimmune diseases.

The recent UVA pilot study isn’t standalone. Earlier research supports the same direction. A 2017 retrospective study of 49 patients—almost all women—found 88% saw palpitations improve and 76% felt less lightheaded, with heart rates dipping and no significant change in blood pressure.

Then a 2021 randomized, placebo-controlled crossover trial—including 22 adults with hyperadrenergic POTS—took it further. The results showed substantial heart rate drops, improved physical and social quality of life, and even reduced norepinephrine levels (the stress hormone that tends to over-react upon standing). None of the participants developed dangerously low blood pressure.

And even earlier studies, including student-case reports and case series, all support the conclusion: ivabradine reduces heart rate without bringing blood pressure down—and that matters because traditional beta blockers can drop both, making some patients feel worse.

How Ivabradine Interrupts the Vicious Vagus Loop?

Here’s what researchers suspect is happening behind the scenes: when someone with POTS stands, the body overreacts with a surge of norepinephrine—our classic fight-or-flight hormone. The heart races, the brain kicks into panic mode, symptoms amplify, and the loop perpetuates itself. Ivabradine, by slowing the heart without altering blood pressure, effectively breaks that cycle at the source. Patients stop spinning, both literally and metaphorically.

What You Should Know POTS?

It's worth noting that these are still early results. The studies are relatively small, but statistically compelling. There's enough here, though, to encourage more formal trials—and for doctors and patients to take notice.

If POTS symptoms sound familiar—if you get faint when you stand, your heart races, and doctors struggle to pinpoint the cause—ivabradine may be a conversation worth having. It’s not a universal cure, but it’s different from other treatments. Rather than forcing blood vessels to tighten or increasing blood volume, it focuses squarely on the heart rate itself.

POTS has always been a misunderstood syndrome—a tricky physiological dance that leaves patients frustrated and clinicians unsure. But treating the pulse directly, instead of chasing blood pressure or fluid levels, looks like a game changer. Ivabradine isn’t a cure-all, but it's poised to offer relief where little existed before.

For anyone sick of dizzy spells, pounding hearts, or unexplained fatigue whenever they stand, it’s time to explore if this one medication could be the difference between feeling trapped and regaining control.

Legionnaires’ disease, has so far killed 3, and infected around 60 people after the recent outbreak in Central Harlem in the New York City. It is a severe form of pneumonia caused by Legionella pneumophila, and is far more than just a respiratory infection.

Unlike typical bacterial pneumonias, Legionnaires’ disease is increasingly being recognized for its distinct symptoms, both during the acute illness and long after recovery.

Now, a landmark study from Switzerland aims to uncover whether Legionella infections lead to their own version of a “long COVID”-like syndrome, providing crucial insights into the post-acute impact of this underdiagnosed illness.

ALSO READ: Legionnaire’s Disease NYC Outbreak: 3 Dead, 67 Sick; Health Authorities Have Identified ZIP Codes Linked With Cluster

What Makes Legionnaires’ Disease Different?

Named after a deadly outbreak during an American Legion convention in Philadelphia in 1976, Legionnaires’ disease is spread primarily through contaminated aerosolized water, not person-to-person contact.

The bacteria thrive in warm, stagnant water found in air-conditioning cooling towers, plumbing systems in large buildings, hot tubs, fountains, and even ice machines.

While the respiratory symptoms may initially resemble other types of pneumonia, cough, fever, and shortness of breath, what sets Legionnaires’ disease apart is the constellation of extrapulmonary symptoms that often accompany it.

These include:

• Muscle aches
• Confusion
• Gastrointestinal issues like diarrhea
• Kidney dysfunction

Hyponatremia, or low sodium levels in the blood, a critical and unique marker of this infection

Hyponatremia: A Clue to Legionella

Hyponatremia, one of the hallmark signs of Legionnaires’ disease, is often absent in other pneumonias. This is one of the unique symptoms of Legionnaires' that distinguishes from pneumonia. It results in dangerously low sodium levels, which can trigger symptoms ranging from mild fatigue and nausea to severe complications like confusion, seizures, or coma.

According to the National Institutes of Health (NIH), hyponatremia often appears early in the course of a Legionella infection and should alert clinicians to consider Legionella pneumonia in patients with respiratory symptoms and abnormal lab findings. Its presence can help guide early diagnosis and prompt treatment, which is critical given the disease’s potential severity.

Long-Term Effects: Is There a “Long Legionnaires’”?

Much like long COVID, survivors of Legionnaires’ disease are now reporting symptoms that persist long after the acute infection has cleared.

These post-acute effects, also seen in other forms of pneumonia, include:

• Chronic fatigue
• Brain fog or cognitive dysfunction
• Decreased quality of life
• Ongoing respiratory issues
• Muscle weakness and joint pain

But what if Legionnaires’ disease leaves a unique post-infection footprint?

That’s the central question behind a new prospective cohort study conducted by researchers in Switzerland. Published in Swiss Medical Weekly, the LongLEGIO study is the first of its kind to compare the long-term effects of Legionnaires’ disease to other forms of bacterial community-acquired pneumonia (CAP).

Inside the LongLEGIO Swiss Study

From June 2023 to June 2024, researchers recruited 59 patients with confirmed Legionnaires’ disease and 60 matched patients with Legionella test-negative CAP. Participants were closely matched by age, sex, hospital type, and timing of diagnosis.

Patients were assessed at four key time points:

• During the acute phase (baseline)
• 2 months after treatment
• 6 months after treatment
• 12 months after treatment

The study used patient-reported outcome measures (PROMs), structured questionnaires to capture symptoms often missed in traditional hospital data. These included:

• Health-Related Quality of Life (HRQoL)
• Persistent fatigue
• Need for continued healthcare
• New or lingering symptoms

What the Baseline Data Reveals

Initial findings already highlight striking differences between the two groups. While the median age for both was 69, patients with Legionnaires’ disease were more likely to experience extrapulmonary symptoms. Notably:

• Muscle aches were reported by 51.8% of Legionnaires’ patients, compared to 25.9% of CAP patients.
• Fever was reported in 89.3% of Legionnaires’ cases vs. 76.3% in CAP.
• ICU admissions were higher among Legionnaires’ cases (13.6% vs. 8.3%).

Additionally, Legionnaires’ patients had a higher prevalence of chronic kidney failure (15.3% vs. 10%) and better pre-illness quality of life than their CAP counterparts, who tended to have more comorbidities such as COPD, cancer, and immunosuppression.

These early differences are critical because they suggest that Legionella may cause a distinct form of post-acute infection syndrome, akin to long COVID but possibly rooted in a different biological mechanism.

When Do Symptoms Begin, And How Long Do They Last?

Legionnaires’ disease symptoms typically begin 2 to 10 days after exposure, but the timeline varies based on individual health and level of exposure. Initially, it may mimic the flu:

• Headache
• Chills
• Muscle pain
• High fever (often >104°F)
• Fatigue

As the disease progresses, more severe or unique symptoms may surface, such as:

• Cough (often dry at first)
• Gastrointestinal issues like diarrhea or nausea
• Confusion or disorientation
• Signs of hyponatremia like fatigue, poor concentration, or seizures

For most patients, acute symptoms resolve within 2 to 4 weeks, but that’s not the end of the story.

Based on evidence from pneumonia survivors and early data from the LongLEGIO cohort, recovery can take several months, especially for those who had severe illness requiring ICU care. Lingering fatigue, shortness of breath, cognitive issues, and poor stamina can persist for 6 to 12 months or more.

Some patients, even after a year, may still experience reduced quality of life and ongoing healthcare needs, a pattern increasingly recognized across other infectious diseases but still under-researched in Legionnaires’.

The National Hurricane Center (NHC) said tropical storm Dexter has been formed in the western Atlantic late Sunday. It will mark the fourth named storm of 2025 Atlantic hurricane season. While the NHC forecast did indicate that the storm would track away from the US coast and was not an immediate threat to land, the storm could however cause fear for many. In fact, several studies have shown that hurricanes could lead to cardiovascular diseases. How? This is because storms and flooding could damage and disrupt health-care infrastructure, which also includes hospitals and clinics, and can further delay access to emergency services.

A 2024 systematic review published in JAMA Cardiology talks about how hurricanes and other extreme weather events could worsen heart disease, and is a leading cause of death worldwide.

The Hidden Cardiac Toll

Dr. Nagamalesh U M, Lead Consultant, Cardiology & Interventional Cardiology at Aster CMI Hospital in Bangalore, emphasized the importance of advance planning. “For heart patients living in hurricane-prone areas, preparation can be life-saving. It’s crucial to keep a ready-to-go emergency kit with extra medications, copies of prescriptions, and backup power sources,” he said.

Stress, Trauma, and the Strain on the Heart

Hurricanes don’t just shatter homes; they unravel lives. The emotional trauma of losing loved ones, being displaced, or enduring weeks without power and water can create chronic psychological stress. In Puerto Rico, for instance, more than 60% of residents in some regions reported heightened mental health symptoms six months after Hurricane Maria, reports Think Global Health.

This isn’t just an emotional toll, it’s a physical one, too. “Chronic psychological stress, especially from events like extreme weather or PTSD, can silently take a toll on heart health over time,” Dr. Nagamalesh explained. Elevated stress hormones like cortisol and adrenaline increase blood pressure, elevate heart rate, and trigger inflammation, all of which put the heart at risk.

Left untreated, the effects of stress can lead to arterial stiffening, plaque build-up, and an increased risk of heart attacks or strokes. It also affects habits: poor sleep, unhealthy eating, and medication non-compliance, all compounding cardiovascular risk.

Case Studies In Disaster: What Past Storms Have Taught Us

The American Journal of Geriatric Psychiatry's 2019 study on PTSD symptoms following Hurricane Katrina revealed how hospitals in New Orleans lost power, forcing medical staff to make heartbreaking choices about which patients to prioritize. Heart attack rates among older adults rose sharply during and after the storm, and stayed elevated for years, especially among those with post-traumatic stress.

When Hurricane Sandy hit New York, generators failed at major hospitals, prompting large-scale evacuations. In its wake, cardiovascular healthcare demand among seniors in New Jersey remained two to three times higher for more than a year. Even two years later, many patients struggled with uncontrolled blood pressure.

Maria’s impact was felt far beyond Puerto Rico. The hurricane crippled a factory that supplied half of the U.S.’s IV fluid bags, triggering a nationwide shortage of essential medications for heart patients.

What To Know Before The Next Storm

Preparing for the next hurricane means more than reinforcing buildings, it requires a complete rethinking of how health systems support cardiovascular patients in times of crisis. Dr. Nagamalesh recommended hospitals identify high-risk heart patients and build personalized emergency protocols. “Investing in mobile clinics, partnering with community pharmacies, and training teams for cardiac emergencies can save lives,” he noted.

Hospitals must also ensure their power and communications infrastructure can withstand extreme weather. During Tropical Storm Harvey, Houston’s trauma center stayed operational, but surrounding road closures caused a food shortage, a lesser-known reason why patient evacuations were considered. Disasters expose not just infrastructural weaknesses, but systemic ones too.

Doctors and patients must work together to create emergency plans tailored to individual needs. “Patients should maintain a backup supply of critical medications and communicate with their care team before and after a storm,” said Dr. Nagamalesh. For those dependent on battery-powered devices, even a few minutes without power can be fatal, highlighting the need for long-term contingency planning.

Mental health care must also be an integral part of storm recovery. Treating stress and anxiety proactively may be as important as refilling prescriptions when it comes to protecting heart health.

As hurricanes intensify with each passing year, cardiovascular resilience must become a cornerstone of climate resilience. Investments in infrastructure, supply chain redundancy, and community-based care aren’t just disaster responses, they’re preventative health measures.

Ultimately, hurricanes may be natural disasters, but the cardiac crises that follow don’t have to be.