Flu Ravages NYC As Number Of Sick Continues To Rise

NEW YORK, NY – Flu is continuing to ravage New York City with another 6,977 cases confirmed in the week ending Feb. 2 – a 3 percent rise on the week before. New York City's health department warned that the illness is widespread.

Of those sickened, 968 needed to be hospitalized.

The disease is now widespread in all but three U.S. states. According to the latest statistics from the Centers for Disease Control and Prevention, at least 28 children have died from flu-related causes during the ongoing flu season. Only one child has died in New York City.

The H1N1 virus (Swine Flu) continues to be the predominant strain in most of the country while the H3N2 virus has predominated in the Southeast. FDA Director Scott Gottlieb has said that the H1N1 strain tends to peak late in the season but that the vaccine has a 60 percent effectiveness or more against it.

Early estimates from the CDC found that by mid-November 2018, 45.6 percent of children aged between 6 months to 17 years old had been vaccinated against the flu, an increase of 6.8 percent compared to early estimates from the previous season. For adults 18 and older, the CDC’s estimates showed that by mid-November, 44.9 percent had been vaccinated against the flu, an increase of 6.4 percent compared to early estimates from the previous season.

Between Oct. 1, 2018 through Feb.2, the CDC estimates that there have been between 13.2 million to 15.2 million flu illnesses in the United States, 6.2 million to 7.2 million flu-related medical visits and between 155,000-186,000 flu hospitalizations.

The only states not reporting widespread flu activity are West Virginia, Alaska and Hawaii. The geographic spread of flu activity does not measure the severity of the virus.

To see where flu is widespread https://www.cdc.gov/flu/weekly/ (scroll to bottom)

The flu can cause serious illness, hospitalization and death. The groups most at risk are older adults, very young children, pregnant women and those with certain chronic medical conditions, according to the CDC.

You can use the CDC’s flu vaccine finder to locate a pharmacy or clinic near you that provides the vaccine:

According to the CDC, symptoms of the flu include:

• Fever or feeling feverish/chills (Though not everyone with flu will have a fever)
• Cough
• Sore throat
• Runny or stuffy nose
• Muscle or body aches
• Headaches
• Fatigue (tiredness)
• Some people may have vomiting and diarrhea, though this is more common in children than adults.

(Lead image: A registered nurse prepares to administer a flu shot .Photo by David Goldman/Associated Press)