France reports first human Shamonda virus case, says no health risk
Until now, the virus was considered non-transferable to humans, making the patient the first documented human case.
French authorities have confirmed that a patient who died at a Lyon hospital earlier in October was infected with the Shamonda virus, the first such report of the virus in a human.
In a statement on Thursday, the French Ministry of Agriculture stressed that there were no identifiable health risks to the general population at this time.
Shamonda is an orthobunyavirus – a group of viruses primarily carried and spread by insects – transmitted to animals, mainly cattle, by biting midges of the genus Culicoides.
Until now, the virus was considered non-transmissible to humans, making the patient in France the first documented human case.