As if the world didn’t have enough problems in developing a vaccine against the new H1N1 influenza virus, known as swine flu, reports from the Southern Hemisphere suggest there might be problems with the seasonal flu vaccine that has been produced for this winter’s flu season.
The Canadian Press reports that some laboratory tests indicate there is a new strain of the H3N2 flu virus — one of three strains included in the flu vaccine — that is different from the A/Brisbane/10 strain of H3N2 that was selected for the vaccine. If that is the case, then the vaccine will provide less protection than health authorities had hoped.
Health authorities will be keeping an eye on nursing homes this autumn because the H3N2 strains prey particularly on the elderly.
