Australia's Super-K flu strain drives record global outbreaks

FILE PHOTO: Passengers walk through the international arrivals terminal of Sydney Airport in Sydney, Australia, on Friday, Dec. 10, 2021. The influenza A (H3N2) subclade K viruses were first detected in Australia and New Zealand in August, late winter, during an unusually long 2025 flu season that extended into summer, and have been identified in over 30 countries worldwide. - Bloomberg

MELBOURNE: Australian scientists say the country's record-breaking 2025 flu season has triggered a fast-spreading "Super-K" strain now driving record global outbreaks.

The influenza A (H3N2) subclade K viruses were first detected in Australia and New Zealand in August, late winter, during an unusually long 2025 flu season that extended into summer, and have been identified in over 30 countries worldwide, said experts from Australia's Peter Doherty Institute for Infection and Immunity.