On Jun. 5, 2024, the World Health Organization (WHO) reported that a person with prior health complications who had contracted bird flu died in Mexico in April and the source of exposure to the virus was unknown, said on Wednesday.

The WHO announced that the 59-year-old resident of the State of Mexico had been hospitalized in Mexico City and died on April 24 after developing a fever, shortness of breath, diarrhea, nausea and general discomfort.

It was the first laboratory-confirmed human case of infection with an influenza A(H5N2) virus globally and the first avian H5 virus reported in a person in Mexico, according to the WHO.

Scientists said the case is unrelated to the outbreak of H5N1 bird flu in the United States that has so far infected three dairy farm workers.

Mexico’s Health Ministry also said in a statement the source of infection had not been identified.

The victim had no history of exposure to poultry or other animals but had multiple underlying medical conditions and had been bedridden for three weeks, for other reasons, prior to the onset of acute symptoms, the WHO said.