WHO: 80% global population could contract A/H1N1 flu

The A/H1N1 flu epidemic may not end until 80 percent of global population are infected by the disease, predicted a source from WHO.

This autumn has been longer and warmer than previous years, prompting doctors to warn that it could lead to a rapid spread of flu infections.

Unfortunately, the A/H1N1 flu and seasonal flu have too many similar symptoms, which threatens the public because people hardly distinguish them.

Like the seasonal flu viruses, the A/H1N1 virus also infects the airway and nasal tract, but in some individuals, it continues to move down and infect the lungs or cause gastrointestinal problems.

It's “very unusual” for seasonal flu viruses to infect lungs, said Dr. Brown, a virologist at the University of Ottawa. The A/H1N1 virus causes lung infection much more often and “more completely,” he said, which is why some people have ended up in intensive care units or even dying from complications of the virus.

However, there is also an optimistic voice. A report from Toronto Star on Oct, 28 believed the panic caused by A/H1N1 was unnecessary. The global death toll of the disease is less than 5000, while normally the seasonal flu claims 250,000 to 500,000 people each year.

In Australia, about 3000 people die of seasonal flu every year. However, only 185 have died as a result of the A/H1N1 virus so far.

By People's Daily Online