Here’s what to know about the United States’ first confirmed severe case of H5N1 avian influenza—and how to protect yourself.

Tiny genetic alterations could help the bird flu virus enter cells in the upper respiratory tract, the C.D.C. said. But there is no sign that mutations are widespread in nature.

The bird flu virus found in a severely ill patient hospitalized in the United States has mutated to become better adapted to human airways, though there is no evidence it has spread beyond the individual,