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What is swine
influenza?
Swine influenza, or “swine flu”, is a highly
contagious acute respiratory disease of
pigs, caused by one of several swine
influenza A viruses. Morbidity tends to be
high and mortality low (1-4%). The virus is
spread among pigs by aerosols, direct and
indirect contact, and asymptomatic carrier
pigs. Outbreaks in pigs occur year round,
with an increased incidence in the fall and
winter in temperate zones. Many countries
routinely vaccinate swine populations
against swine influenza.
Swine influenza viruses are most commonly of
the H1N1 subtype, but other subtypes are
also circulating in pigs (e.g., H1N2, H3N1,
H3N2). Pigs can also be infected with avian
influenza viruses and human seasonal
influenza viruses as well as swine influenza
viruses. The H3N2 swine virus was thought to
have been originally introduced into pigs by
humans. Sometimes pigs can be infected with
more than one virus type at a time, which
can allow the genes from these viruses to
mix. This can result in an influenza virus
containing genes from a number of sources,
called a "reassortant" virus. Although swine
influenza viruses are normally species
specific and only infect pigs, they do
sometimes cross the species barrier to cause
disease in humans.
Reference:
http://www.who.int/csr/disease/swineflu/faq/en/index.html |