Toronto Hospital Worker Infected With H1N1 As Ontario's Caseload Rises To 49

A Toronto hospital worker is one of the 49 people in the province currently infected with H1N1.

All the Ontario cases to date have been mild.

The worker, who was not providing patient care, was employed at Princess Margaret Hospital.

The person had no link to Mexico and the hospital is following up with any staff that may have had direct contact with the infected person.

Since the H1N1 outbreak began, the vast majority of the deaths have been in Mexico - even though the same virus has been found all across the world. It's an issue that's been puzzling scientists and doctors alike.

"There's nothing at the genetic level that differentiates this virus from Mexico and those from Nova Scotia and Ontario," explained Dr. Frank Plummer of the National Microbiology Laboratory.

The virus has not mutated,  a significant finding as scientists try to explain why so many have died in Mexico but elsewhere in the world, cases haven't been as serious.

"Part of the answer is that it's likely not the virus itself," Plummer added.

It might be the age of the victims, but at this point, scientists just aren't sure.