TORONTO - Public health officials in Ontario want to try to get a sense of how many people in the province have already been infected with swine flu.
The Ontario Agency for Health Protection and Promotion says it is launching a landmark provincewide study to estimate how far the pandemic virus has spread and how many people may still be vulnerable.
They say the study will determine risk factors for infection and are seeking volunteers 18 years or older to participate.
The agency says the findings will have important implications for infection control, vaccination policies and future research relating to patterns of infection of the flu virus.
Participants will be asked to complete an online questionnaire and provide blood samples at a local laboratory and some will also be asked for saliva samples for testing.
Anyone interested can visit http://h1n1study.oahpp.ca for information or to register and the agency says all volunteers will be given their test results.
