Bird Flu Symptoms in Humans

Humans get bird flu through close contact with sick or dead poultry or poultry markets in countries known to harbor the virus. Infected people experience typical flu-like symptoms including fever, cough, sore throat, and muscle aches. Some people also have nausea, vomiting, diarrhea, or eye infections. This can progress to pneumonia and even respiratory failure. In fact, bird flu is much more fatal in humans than is normal human influenza. Bird flu causes a very aggressive form of respiratory flu that progresses quickly. More than half of people who have contracted bird flu have died.