SOMBA K'E/YELLOWKNIFE - As the primary flu months of October through May begin to descend, the H1N1 virus has overtaken the regular seasonal flu as the most common flu virus in the NWT.

"We're not seeing seasonal flu here, we're seeing H1N1. In terms of the viruses that we're testing right now, the most common influenza is H1N1," said Dr Kami Kandola, chief public health officer.

She said while the symptoms of H1N1 remain relatively mild, people have and will continue to die from complications with the virus, so vaccination is the best option.

"Most people who get this flu will recover and go on, no problems. But there will be a significant sub-set who will go on and develop complications. So the reason why we would promote the flu vaccine is that even for young and healthy people, we don't know which ones will get through, or which ones will end up hospitalized or dead."

"The best prevention is to go and get the vaccine so you don't have to find out," she said.

While no one has died from H1N1 in the NWT, she said the vaccine will provide immediate protection to individuals and, if enough people receive the shots, the spread of the virus will be thwarted.

"The purpose is to interrupt the transmission of the virus. Getting the vaccine protects them (the individual) because no one has any immunity to this virus, but they also decrease the circulation of this virus as well," Kandola said.

She said it is important to receive the the seasonal flu shot as well.

"Once we give out the H1N1 vaccine, then the strain's going to drop, and the other ones (flu viruses) will start to ramp up... Which is why we still say you need to have the seasonal flu shot and the H1N1 shot," she said.

Kandola said the clinical trials of the vaccine have not yet been completed but the results are expected within the next few weeks and, based on the initial outcomes, it looks like there will only be one H1N1 vaccination shot required, as opposed to the two shots proposed earlier.

"It's leaning towards one dose, and it seems like they need less antigen to allow protection, which is good because then they can manufacture more vaccine," she said.

She said some people may experience soreness, redness, and swelling around the injection area.

"The most common thing is no side effect, but some people may get headaches, muscle aches and fever, but that's uncommon," she said.

She added it is recommended that people who are allergic to eggs and have had a bad reaction to the regular flu vaccine avoid the H1N1 vaccine.

"But that's a very small proportion of the population, and I'll be the first to get the vaccine," she said.

She said avoiding the discomfort of the flu is worth enduring an injection.

"Ask your peers who are off sick what feels worse - getting the flu or getting the needle? If they could have avoided the misery of the illness, I think most people would opt for the needle," she said.

Kandola said notes were being taken from Australia, where the flu season is winding down.

"One of the things the Australians have said is treat people at high risk early and aggressively with antivirals, and that's the approach I've taken in the NWT," she said.

She added that little comfort can been taken from the fact that countries in the Southern Hemisphere have come out of the flu season relatively unscathed, as they were experiencing the first wave of the virus and the Northern Hemisphere is going into the second wave, so things may not go as smoothly.

However, she said mobile action teams charged with getting the H1N1 vaccine to residents of the NWT are ready to begin operations in November

Jen Buck, a nurse and the mobile action team co-ordinator, said because the communities in the NWT have smaller populations, mass immunization is easier than trying to perform the task in one area with a large population.