Swine flu virus in India ‘has become more virulent’ since 2009 outbreak

Since December 2014, swine flu has claimed the lives of over 1,300 people in India, making it the worst outbreak of the virus in the country since 2009. But according to a new study by researchers from the Massachusetts Institute of Technology, the virus that has caused the current epidemic is not the same as the one responsible for the 2009 outbreak; it has acquired mutations that make it more virulent. The 2009 swine flu outbreak – caused by the H1N1 virus – originated in Mexico, rapidly spreading from country to country. It is estimated that 43-89 million people around the globe became infected with the virus, and between 8,870 and 18,300 deaths were reported as a result. Around 2,700 of these deaths occurred in India. While the virus has been circulating worldwide ever since, late 2014 saw a major resurgence in India. Since mid-December, it is estimated that the H1N1 virus...