The new A / H1N1 virus that’s spreading around the world appears to affect young people far more than the old.
In Mexico, nearly seven in every 10 people infected by the new A / H1N1 virus, and ill enough to have been taken to hospital and gotten tested, were under 30 years of age, according to Mexican government figures.
The picture in the U.S. appears similar. The U.S. Center for Disease Control said on Sunday the median age for 226 confirmed cases is 17 years old.
Here is the breakdown by age group, according to information given out on Sunday by Mexico’s health ministry based on 506 people who have tested positive for the virus so far. The numbers could change as the government tests more samples, but the trend seems clear.
|AGE||NUMBER OF CASES||PCT OF TOTAL|
Three victims’ ages were not known.
Numbers like these can help scientists understand how different viruses behave.