The Middletown Press (Middletown, CT)
Doctors say flu ‘light’ now, but could spike
Flu activity is “very light” right now, said Dr. Zane Saul, chief of infectious disease at Bridgeport Hospital.
But he, and others, warn a spike in the contagious respiratory illness could be near — so don’t get too comfortable.
“Last year, we saw a very rapid uptick in activity right before Christmas,” Saul said. “We don’t want anybody’s holiday ruined by the flu.”
Others say this could be a calm before the storm.
“The biggest peaks for flu-like illnesses often occurs December through February, so it’s still a little too early to make any accurate predictions,” said Dr. David Lo, an internist at Western Connecticut Medical Group, a primary care and specialty care group affiliated with the Western Connecticut Health Network, which includes Danbury, New Milford and Norwalk hospitals.
“At Western Connecticut Medical Group/Western Connecticut Health Network, we have been seeing patients hospitalized with the flu, mostly with influenza A,” Lo said.
Nationwide, flu activity “remains low, although small increases in activity were reported,” according to the Centers for Disease Control and Prevention’s most recent flu report.
That is the case in Connecticut, as well. As of Nov. 17, 124 people had tested positive for the flu — up from 100 the week before — and 44 had been hospitalized with the illness, according to the state Department of Public Health. One flu-associated death has been reported so far this season, though a second one was briefly reported, then recanted as erroneous.
Echoing the CDC’s findings, influenza A viruses are the predominate type circulating, though some influenza B viruses are being reported.
Of the state’s counties, Hartford and New Haven tied for the most flu cases, at 36, with Fairfield County close behind at 30. Litchfield was a distant fourth, with nine cases.
Last season was particularly bad for the flu,in Connecticut and nationwide. Connecticut reported 154 flu-associated deaths from the illness last season — including at least three children. Nationwide, more than 80,000 people died from flu last year. It was a bad flu, partly because last season’s flu vaccine was, on average, 36 percent effective at preventing flu infections.
Still, experts said the flu vaccine offers at least some protection, even in years when it is a bad match for circulating viruses.
“This is still a great time for the flu vaccine,” Lo said in an email.