Christmas week was no picnic with regard to the flu, as many aspects of the CDC’s flu surveillance saw a big jump.

Patient visits for respiratory illnesses increased to 6.8%, above the national baseline of 3%. To date, 11 children have died of the flu this season, including 2 this week. Of all clinical lab tests, about 18.7% were positive for influenza.

Our flu surveillance product will continue to focus on the severity of the flu rather than the geographic spread. This information is reported to the U.S. Centers for Disease Control and Prevention (CDC) by each state’s health department ranging on a scale from “minimal” to “very high” levels of activity.

States and territories reporting flu include the following activity and trends:

Very High (23 states, Washington, D.C., and New York City): Alabama, Arizona, Arkansas, California, Colorado, Florida, Georgia, Idaho, Kansas, Kentucky, Louisiana, Mississippi, Nebraska, Nevada, New Hampshire, New Jersey, New Mexico, Ohio, Oregon, South Carolina, Tennessee, Texas and Washington.

Nevada saw a 4-step increase from Minimal. However, they had previously been High two weeks ago.
Kentucky saw a 3-step jump from Low to Very High.
New Hampshire saw a 2-step increase from Moderate.
Arizona, Arkansas, Colorado, Washington, D.C., Florida, Georgia, Kansas, Nebraska, New Jersey, Ohio, South Carolina, Texas and Washington all increased from High to Very High.
Alabama, California, Idaho, Louisiana, Mississippi, New Mexico, New York City, Oregon and Tennessee were previously at Very High.

High (17 states): Alaska, Connecticut, Hawaii, Illinois, Indiana, Iowa, Maryland, Massachusetts, Michigan, Minnesota, New York, North Carolina, Oklahoma, Pennsylvania, Utah and Virginia.

Minnesota trended 3 steps higher, having Minimal flu severity last week.
Michigan, Oklahoma, Pennsylvania and Utah saw a 2-step jump from Low.
Connecticut, Hawaii, Illinois, Maryland, New York, North Carolina and Wisconsin trended upward from Moderate.
Indiana, Iowa, Massachusetts and Virginia all remain at High since last week.
Alaska did not report last week.

Moderate (5 states and Puerto Rico): Maine, Missouri, North Dakota, Rhode Island and Wyoming.

Maine, Missouri, North Dakota and Wyoming increased 2 steps this week, having previously been at Minimal.
Puerto Rico and Rhode Island all experienced a single-step increase from Low.

Low (3 states): Delaware, South Dakota and West Virginia.

All three states are trending upward from Minimal to Low.

Minimal (2 states and the Northern Marianas Islands): Montana and Vermont

Both states and the Northern Marianas Islands all remain at Minimal as they were last week.

Insufficient data was received from the Virgin Islands.

Here are a few flu facts:

The CDC recommends all people older than six months of age get the seasonal flu vaccine, either via an injection or nasal spray. Consult with your doctor or pharmacist to find out about flu vaccine side-effects, precautions and vaccine options – there are several multi-strain variations available this year.

Due to certain health restrictions, not everyone is eligible to receive the flu shot. For those of you who are not able to get a flu shot, there are other things you can do to minimize your risk for contracting the flu, as well as giving it to others:

Avoid close contact with those who are sick.
Avoid exposing others when you are sick. Stay home from work or school if you are exhibiting symptoms.
Cover your mouth and nose when sneezing or coughing.
Wash your hands frequently.
Avoid touching your eyes, nose or mouth.

Lastly, getting a flu shot is not a guarantee that you won`t end up getting the flu, but it can help you from catching it as easily and can even help keep symptoms from being as bad. The CDC has urged doctors to prescribe one or a combination of the three-available prescription antiviral drugs to patients with flu-like symptoms. If given early enough, there is evidence that antivirals can lessen the intensity and duration of influenza symptoms.
---
Source: U.S. Centers for Disease Control and Prevention

Weekly Flu Update: Christmas Week Sees Large Increases