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What's the difference between H1N1 flu and influenza A?
By Mayo Clinic staffOriginal Article: http://www.mayoclinic.com/health/influenza-a/AN02041
- With Mayo Clinic internist
James M. Steckelberg, M.D.
read biographyclose windowBiography of
James M. Steckelberg, M.D.
James Steckelberg, M.D.
Dr. James Steckelberg is a consultant in the Division of Infectious Diseases and a professor of medicine at Mayo Medical School.
A native of Fremont, Neb., Dr. Steckelberg was a Rhodes Scholar and graduated from the Mayo Graduate School of Medicine as a resident in internal medicine and a fellow in infectious diseases, and is board certified in both. He is the former director of the Infectious Diseases Research Laboratory at Mayo Clinic.
Dr. Steckelberg belongs to numerous professional organizations. He is a founding member of the Musculoskeletal Infection Society and a fellow of the American College of Physicians and of the Infectious Diseases Society of America. He has served on many Mayo Clinic committees and is a member of the Department of Medicine Leadership Committee and of the executive committee of the Division of Infectious Diseases. He also served on the editorial boards of "Mayo Clinic Proceedings" and "Antimicrobial Agents and Chemotherapy" and has been an editorial reviewer for more than a dozen publications.
Dr. Steckelberg's research interests include experimental models of infection, epidemiology of infection, and antimicrobial resistance and therapy of bacterial infections.
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Question
What's the difference between H1N1 flu and influenza A?
What's the difference between H1N1 flu and influenza A?
Answer
from James M. Steckelberg, M.D.
Flu (influenza) viruses are divided into three broad categories: influenza A, B or C. Influenza A is the most common type. H1N1 flu is a variety of influenza A. H1N1 indicates the viral serotype; it's a kind of shorthand for characteristics that identify the virus to your immune system and allow the virus to enter your cells.
There are many different strains of H1N1 flu. Varieties of influenza A (H1N1), influenza A (H3N2) and influenza B are included in each year's flu vaccine. This year, the vaccine protects against the strain of H1N1 flu that caused the 2009 pandemic.
Next questionFlu symptoms: Self-care for the flu
- Seasonal influenza: Types of influenza viruses. Centers for Disease Control and Prevention. http://www.cdc.gov/flu/about/viruses/types.htm. Accessed Nov. 12, 2010.
- Centers for Disease Control and Prevention, et al. Prevention and control of influenza with vaccines: Recommendations of the Advisory Committee on Immunization Practices (ACIP), 2010. MMWR. 2010;59:1. http://www.cdc.gov/mmwr/pdf/rr/rr59e0729.pdf. Accessed Aug. 2, 2010.
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