What do h1n1 stand for

Who knows what numbers of the dice will be our next pandemic strain? This is the third article in our series Facts about Flu. Click on the links below to read other instalments in the series.

Part one : Of influenza, flu, potions and key opinion leaders. Part two : Influenza vaccine for who, what, why and when? Part four : The Tamiflu saga shows why all research data should be public. Part six : Should flu shots be mandatory for health-care workers? Part seven : The Holy Grail of influenza research: a universal flu vaccine.

Part eight : Is it really the flu? The other viruses making you ill in winter. Part nine : The heart of the matter: how effective is the flu jab really? Edition: Available editions United Kingdom. This virus is a combination of viruses from pigs, birds and humans that causes disease in humans. During the flu season, H1N1 caused the respiratory infection in humans that was commonly referred to as swine flu.

In August , WHO declared the pandemic over. After the pandemic was over, the H1N1 flu virus became one of the strains that cause seasonal flu. The flu vaccine can now help protect against the H1N1 flu swine flu.

The H1N1 flu virus strain is included in the seasonal flu vaccine, including the vaccine for The signs and symptoms of flu caused by the H1N1 virus are similar to those of infections caused by other flu strains and can include:. It's not necessary to see a doctor if you're generally healthy and develop flu signs and symptoms, such as fever, cough and body aches.

Call your doctor, however, if you have flu symptoms and you're pregnant or you have a chronic disease, such as asthma, emphysema, diabetes or a heart condition, because you have a higher risk of flu complications.

If you have emergency signs and symptoms of the flu, get medical care right away. For adults, emergency signs and symptoms can include:. Influenza viruses such as H1N1 infect the cells that line your nose, throat and lungs.

The virus enters your body when you inhale contaminated droplets or transfer live virus from a contaminated surface to your eyes, nose or mouth. If you live in or travel to an area where many people are infected with the H1N1 virus, you may be exposed to the virus.

Each year's seasonal flu vaccine protects against the three or four influenza viruses that are expected to be the most common during that year's flu season. The flu vaccine can reduce your risk of the flu and its severity and lower the risk of having serious illness from the flu and needing to stay in the hospital. Flu vaccination is especially important in the flu season because the flu and coronavirus disease COVID cause similar symptoms. Preventing the flu and reducing the severity of flu illness and hospitalizations could also lessen the number of people needing to stay in the hospital.

The flu vaccine is available as an injection and as a nasal spray. The CDC believes that this virus resulted from antigenic shift, which as noted above is a process through which two or more influenza viruses can swap genetic information by infecting a single human or animal host. When antigenic shift occurs, the virus that emerges will have some gene segments from each of the infecting parent viruses and may have different characteristics than either of the parental viruses, just as children may exhibit unique characteristics that are like both of their parents.

In this case, the shift most likely occurred between influenza viruses circulating in North American pig herds and among Eurasian pig herds. Influenza type A viruses can undergo both antigenic drift and shift, while the influenza type B viruses only change by antigenic drift. Factsheets Immune System Glossary What is a virus? However, treatment with antivirals e. For people who are sick, help yourself get better and prevent the spread of the virus by doing the following:.

There are ways to protect yourself from catching the H1N1 flu virus. By far, the most effective preventative measure is to get the influenza vaccine just before the annual flu season generally November through April in North America. Here are some tips to prevent flu:. All material copyright MediResource Inc.

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