#11,698
After 3 consecutive weeks where the CDC has reported a total of 18 H3N2v cases - all linked to swine exposures at county fairs in Ohio and Michigan - today's FluView reports no new cases over the past week.
While a welcome respite, the Midwestern county & state fair season runs for a couple of more months, and so the reminders to the public (see CDC On Protecting Against Swine Variant Viruses) remain very much in play.
Here is today's CDC statement:
Novel Influenza A Viruses:
No additional human infections with novel influenza A viruses were reported to CDC during week 34. To date, a total of 18 (Michigan [12] and Ohio [6]) human infections with H3N2v viruses have been identified during 2016, all reported during the month of August. One of the 18 persons were hospitalized as a result of H3N2v illness. No deaths have occurred. All variant virus infections have been associated with swine exposure in fair settings and no human-to-human transmission has been identified.
Early identification and investigation of human infections with novel influenza A viruses are critical to ensure timely risk assessment and so that appropriate public health measures can be taken. Additional information on influenza in swine, variant influenza infection in humans, and strategies to interact safely with swine can be found at http://www.cdc.gov/flu/swineflu/index.htm.
For more on Swine Variant viruses, you may want to check out the following links.
PNAS: The Pandemic Potential Of Eurasian Avian-like H1N1 (EAH1N1) Swine Influenza
Eurosurveillance: Seroprevalence Of Cross-Reactive Antibodies To Swine H3N2v – Germany
