A new study released yesterday from Canadian Institute for Health Information, it was found that, H1N1 sends more and younger people to hospital than the regular flu. The number of people requiring vital care was 50% higher than what is resulted by normal seasonal flu or pneumonia.

Shockingly the study also found that one in six H1N1 patients in hospital were admitted to the ICU, 10% of which need ventilation to breathe the percentage being double that of the seasonal flu. For this study analysts studied data from FluWatch and compared CIHI's hospital statistics for the year 2007 to 2008 to the Public Health Agency of Canada from April to December 2009.

The affected ones were found to be younger ones, as the mean age for patients of H1N1 was 28, while for the seasonal flu was 71. According to the study, pregnant women were also more affected.

Kathleen Morris, head of emerging issues at CIHI, said, “The study gives input to hospitals as they sit back and review and tweak their pandemic plans. I think the study is a good springboard for others to do research on it”.

In an announcement coming from WHO yesterday said that an emergency panel is expected to meet later this month. The global death toll of swine flu was 15,174.

She further said, “There were also four deaths of pregnant women with H1N1, but deaths in hospital among pregnant women with seasonal flu were exceedingly rare”.