It has been confirmed that 2 people have been killed by a mutated version of the H1N1 swine flu virus that was first discovered in Norway last week, according to health officials on Friday.
A spokesperson for the French Ministry of Health and Solidarity said that two patients had died as a result of the mutated H1N1 virus. No information has been made available as to where and when they died.
The mutated H1N1 strain was discovered in Norway and scientists made the announcement last week. According to a statement issued by the Norwegian Institute of Public Health, two patients there had been killed by the mutated virus while a third patient survived.
The institute says that the new, mutated strain of the virus is likely to infect humans deeper in the airways and will thus cause more severe illness. At this time, the World Health Organization (WHO) and the Norwegian Institute of Public Health believe that the new virus has been contained. One health official says, however, that the two patients who succumbed to the new virus in France had not been to Norway. It is not immediately apparent how exactly they could have been infected by the new strain.
No other instances of the mutated H1N1 swine flu virus have been found in France or elsewhere.
The World Health Organization has made no comment on the matter.
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- China reports 8 cases of swine flu mutation (msnbc.msn.com)
- Norway Reports Mutated H1N1 Flu (online.wsj.com)
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