Bird flu leaves teen in critical condition after country's first reported case

A teenager has been left in critical condition after contracting the first presumptive human case of avian influenza (H5N1, or bird flu) in Canada.

B.C. provincial health officer Dr. Bonnie Henry announced the patient’s status at a news conference Tuesday, noting that the teen was healthy "prior to this, so no underlying conditions."

"It just reminds us that in young people, this is a virus that can progress and cause quite severe illness, and the deterioration that I mentioned was quite rapid," she said.