How many people contracted swine flu

However, typical seasonal influenza causes most of its deaths among the elderly while other severe cases occur most commonly in people with a variety of medical conditions. By contrast, this H1N1 pandemic caused most of its severe or fatal disease in younger people, both those with chronic conditions as well as healthy persons, and caused many more cases of viral pneumonia than is normally seen with seasonal influenza.

In a pandemic, the proportion of deaths among the young should increase See here and here , and several studies have further demonstrated this age shift in deaths to younger populations. In a scenario, the major prevention strategies are to target younger people to minimize the loss to expected years of life. The data support the theory that the current epidemic is a late seasonal effect in the Northern Hemisphere on the back of a mild ILI season.

The age structure of those most affected does not fit the evidence from previous pandemics. The virus quickly spread globally, primarily affecting children and adults under 65 who lacked immunity to H1N1. On Oct. Globally, an estimated , to , people died from swine flu in the first year of the pandemic. More than ,00 cases and 4, deaths have been reported globally.

All Rights Reserved. Privacy Policy. COVID is not influenza, although it behaves in some ways like influenza. It is, instead, more accurately called a highly contagious viral pneumonia. In mild cases it results in few if any symptoms, such as cough and mild fever.

In severe cases, it results in life-threatening pneumonia that can be fatal, particularly in the elderly, immunocompromised and individuals with underlying medical conditions such as heart disease, lung disease and diabetes. The virus in the pandemic is considered to be quite different from the typical H1N1 viruses that were circulating at the time. Dubbed H1N1 pdm09, very few young people had existing immunity to it, but about one-third of people over 60 years of age had antibodies against it, probably from exposure to other, older H1N1 viruses at some time in their lives.

This also meant that vaccinations for seasonal influenza offered very little protection against it. A vaccine for the H1N1 pdm09 vaccine was manufactured, but was not available in significant quantities until late November, well after the peak of the illness in the second wave of the disease and finished in the U. This is a useful reminder as well. Even in influenza, seasonality is not a well-understood phenomenon.

The H1N1 pandemic originated in the United States before spreading around the world, according to the U. A later study suggested it was first diagnosed in humans in Mexico. They also estimate that worldwide, , to , people died from H1N1 pdm09 during the first year.