Pigs are responsible for infecting children with a type of swine flu not previously seen in humans, according to a report published by the U.S. Centers for Disease Control and Prevention. None of the 18 persons infected from the variant virus infections were severely ill. The positive message here is that the CDC’s surveillance methods are working and we have “eyes” on variant virus anomalies.
Source: CNN, October 28, 2016.
‘This has occurred ever since man, fowl and swine closely interacted with each other,’ said Dr. Greg Poland, director of the Mayo Clinic’s vaccine research group and a member of the Infectious Diseases Society of America. He explained that only recently have scientists understood the importance of surveillance. ‘In the past, this would have never been detected. No one would have understood that it had happened, and life would go on.’