North American outbreaks of avian influenza A(H7N9) - often referred to as "bird flu" - have public health officials paying close attention. The Centers for Disease and Prevention (CDC) says the risk to the public's health from the H7N9 virus outbreak in commercial poultry in the U.S. is low. The U.S. Department of Agriculture says this is not the same virus that has impacted poultry and infected humans in Asia. In China, there have been recent confirmed cases of human infections of H7N9 virus. Mayo Clinic infectious diseases specialist Dr. Pritish Tosh says, "When we’re talking about avian influenza cases affecting humans, it is in people who have had close contact with poultry or other types of birds that could carry or get infected with avian influenza. Often in these outbreaks, you will see a handful of cases of people who have had no contact with a sick bird as part of the outbreak but instead got it from somebody else who got it from a sick bird." Dr. T...