SCIENCE BRIEFING
From Times Staff And Wire Reports
In the early stages of the pandemic H1N1 flu outbreak in Chicago, blacks and Latinos were about four times more likely than non-Latino whites to contract the virus.
The finding, from the Chicago Department of Public Health, was published in the Centers for Disease Control and Prevention’s Morbidity and Mortality Weekly Report.
CDC officials said it was unlikely that genetic factors explained the increased susceptibility.
Rather, both groups have higher rates of diabetes and other conditions that make them more susceptible.
