GENEVA (BNO NEWS) — The World Health Organization (WHO) on Friday said that a variant of the H1N1 swine flu virus found in Norway and France is not new, despite earlier reports saying it was a new mutated virus.

Last week, Norway announced it had found a new mutated version of the H1N1 swine flu virus in two people who had since died. A third person was also diagnosed with the same virus and had serious symptoms.

Earlier on Friday, the French Ministry of Health and Solidarity announced that two patients had died of the same strain found in Norway. Health officials said the victims had not visited Norway and said both cases were unrelated. A spokeswoman added to say an investigation was underway.

But a spokesman for the World Health Organization (WHO) said there was no new mutation, and instead said it was an old mutation. “It was first found in April,” a spokesman said, who said the variant had been identified as mutation 222.

“Until last week in Norway, the virus was not associated with any deaths,” he said, which may explain the sudden attention for the variant. The health agency said viruses change all the time, and said the variant has been seen in China, Japan, Brazil, Mexico, and other countries around the world.

But the health agency said it remains unclear if the mutated virus would have any impact on a larger scale. The current vaccine appears to be working against the 222 mutation, he added.