New flu strain infects Iowa kids

Three kids in Iowa appear to be hosting a new strain of the flu. The good news is, it isn't particularly dangerous. Still, authorities are keeping an eye on the situation.

ATLANTA, CA (Catholic Online) - This is not the first appearance of this new strain whch has been seen in other victims throughout the Northeast, however those victims had contact with swine.

What makes the current cases notable is that the three children identified as carrying the virus have had no contact with pigs. This tells officials at the virus has mutated and can now be transmitted from person to person.

The new virus is designated H3N2 and researchers believe it has acquired a gene which helps it transmit from person to person more easily than the H1N1 swine flu which caused 2009's pandemic. They believe that the H1N1 virus and the H3N2 virus managed to land inside a cell at the same time and swap genetic information which resulted in the latest mutation.

Flu viruses commonly swap genes with other strains of the flu which can happen if two different strains manage to infect the same cell at the same time. This ability for flu viruses to quickly mutate is part of what makes the disease so dangerous and unpredictable.

Fortunately, no new cases have appeared in the past week which has researchers hoping that the outbreak is either very mild, or very isolated. They are hoping the disease does not spread.

People who have had flu shots for the current flu season are not protected against this new strain of the virus, since researchers did not believe it would be a threat and did not include it in the batch. The good news is, people who are infected with this new strain did not suffer any more than anyone else with another garden-variety case of the flu.

Researchers say they will continue to monitor the situation, and that the public will be updated as new information comes available.

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