PHOENIX, AZ — State health officials say that the worst of
H1N1 passed last flu season,
according to The Herald.
"We expect
H1N1 to be back again this year because that''s what happens when we have pandemics," said Karen Lewis, the medical director for the
Arizona Immunization Program, part of the state
Department of Health Services.
"But it tends to not have quite the severe impact because fewer total people are infected," Lewis added.
What impact
H1N1 will have this year is difficult to predict: Individual immunity, immunizations from last year and the mutating nature of influenza make it difficult to forecast, said a spokesperson for the
Maricopa County Department of Public Health.
Despite this, health officials remain optimistic that
H1N1 will not be as virulent as it was the previous year, the article noted.
