Flu is a common and thoroughly unpleasant illness but there are many different types. Even when we hear of outbreaks of seasonal flu, there could still be several different viruses circulating at any one time. Here are some of the most common flu viruses:
Seasonal Flu
This is the type of flu that circulates for a few months of every year and differs depending on where in the world you are located. Seasonal flu could be one or all of the three main types of flu – A,B and C. If you want to help in the fight to find more effective treatments for such illnesses, consider taking part in Paid Research Studies.
Influenza A
Type A flu is the most common type that causes the seasonal outbreak. It is found in both animals and humans and is spread by those already infected by touching an item that they have touched and from being in the same room as someone infected who might be coughing or sneezing. Even Influenza A is separated further into sub-groups of viruses including H and N strains, and even variants of those two strains!
H & N Subtypes
These are caused by certain proteins that attach themselves to the A virus. There are 16 H variants and 9 of the N variant. This is how flu names such as H1N1 come into being, as they explain the different protein makeup of the A virus.
The difficulty in finding effective treatments for flu comes from the fact that strains can mutate. The H1N1 pandemic, even those technically an A virus, mutated as a combination of swine, bird and human flu. It was, therefore, different to the usual Influenza A seasonal outbreak. Paid Research Studies continue to look for a cure or better prevention to the spread of such viruses.
Influenza B
This is another virus that is responsible for many of the annual outbreaks across the world. It only appears in humans and can be highly dangerous, although technically not as severe as type A. It does not cause pandemics and while there are different strains of the virus, it is not broken down into different subtypes.
Influenza C
This is another human-only virus that it milder than types A and B. Sufferers might complain of mild respiratory problems. Type C doesn’t cause pandemics. The symptoms are close to those of having a cold.
Flu Pandemic
In theory, any one of these strains could cause a pandemic, which is defined as a mass outbreak in humans around the world in a short space of time. Flu pandemics of the past have devastated populations, causing terrible illness and many millions of deaths globally. The pandemic of 1918 was particularly deadly.
