GENEVA, Swaziland, Nov. 5 (UPI) -- The H1N1 influenza virus should not be treated like a seasonal flu strain, a World Health Organization doctor said Thursday in Geneva, Switzerland.
Dr. Keiji Fukuda, the U.N. health agency's point man on H1N1, said it is now the dominant flu strain around the world, CNN reported. He said it is spreading quickly in many regions.
Also Thursday, an advocacy organization said at least seven members of a remote tribe living in the Amazon rainforest have died of H1N1.
While H1N1, commonly known as swine flu, has much in common with seasonal flu -- including the quick recovery of most of those who become sick -- there are important differences, Fukuda warned.
H1N1 continues to be transmitted during the summer. Younger healthy adults are also more likely to become seriously ill and to die, while seasonal flu tends to kill the elderly, the very young and people with other health problems.
The H1N1 strain first appeared in Mexico in April.
