tetano
Editor, Senior Moderator
This winter's flu season has been mild, but the usual flu peak comes next month, so it's not over yet, federal health officials say.
By Eileen Blass, USA TODAY
Historically, flu cases peak in February, so there's still time for the virus to ramp up.
There are two main flu sub-types circulating in the USA.
Of the lab-tested specimens reported, 11% of flu cases were H1N1, roughly 50% were H3N2 and the rest weren't sub-typed.
The H3N2 strain is of concern because it tends to be more deadly to the frail elderly, says Michael Osterholm, director of the Center for Infectious Disease Research and Policy at the University of Minnesota.
One possible factor contributing to this mild flu season is the unseasonably mild weather much of the country has experienced.
"People haven't been cooped up together inside so much," Osterholm says, "but we really don't know if that's the cause."
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http://yourlife.usatoday.com/health.../Dont-be-lulled-by-mild-flu-season/52746736/1
By Eileen Blass, USA TODAY
Historically, flu cases peak in February, so there's still time for the virus to ramp up.
There are two main flu sub-types circulating in the USA.
Of the lab-tested specimens reported, 11% of flu cases were H1N1, roughly 50% were H3N2 and the rest weren't sub-typed.
The H3N2 strain is of concern because it tends to be more deadly to the frail elderly, says Michael Osterholm, director of the Center for Infectious Disease Research and Policy at the University of Minnesota.
One possible factor contributing to this mild flu season is the unseasonably mild weather much of the country has experienced.
"People haven't been cooped up together inside so much," Osterholm says, "but we really don't know if that's the cause."
..
http://yourlife.usatoday.com/health.../Dont-be-lulled-by-mild-flu-season/52746736/1