The Washington Postreports that a mutated version of the H1N1 virus has been discovered by Norwegian scientists. The scientists say the mutation could cause a more severe disease.
In a statement, the Norwegian Institute of Public Health said the mutation "could possibly make the virus more prone to infect deeper in the airways and thus cause more severe disease," such as pneumonia.
The institute said that there was no indication that the mutation would hinder the ability of the vaccine to protect people from becoming infected or impair the effectiveness of antiviral drugs in treating people who became infected.
Two patients found to have the mutated swine flu virus died and a third is severly ill. The Washington Post says a statement released by the Norwegian Institute of Public Health said, "Based on what we know so far, it seems that the mutated virus does not circulate in the population, but might be a result of spontaneous changes which have occurred in these three patients."
