An outbreak of a respiratory infection that most often affects birds has killed five people in Europe, the World Health Organization (WHO) warns. During 2023 and the start of 2024, Austria, Denmark, Germany, Sweden and the Netherlands have reported an "unusual and unexpected increase" in cases of so-called parrot fever, beyond what's been seen in previous years, the WHO said in a statement Tuesday (March 5). In all, the illness has affected almost 90 people, with five deaths reported among them. Parrot fever, or psittacosis , is caused by a species of bacteria called Chlamydia psittaci (also spelled Chlamydophila psittaci ) . The bacteria can infect many mammals — including dogs, cats and horses — but most often infects birds. Humans can catch psittacosis by inhaling airborne particles containing C. psittaci , but human-to-human transmission of the disease is very rare , with only a handful of cases ever reported. Instead, most people develop psittacosi...
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