Hospitals stressed by rapid spread of flu, other viruses

Flu and other lung viruses, including one that poses its greatest dangers to young children and the elderly, are spreading rapidly in an early-season outbreak that’s alarming doctors and burdening hospitals.

Estimated illnesses from flu this season roughly doubled over the week ending Oct. 28 to about 1.6 million, according the U.S. Centers for Disease Control and Prevention, while hospitalizations rose at a similar rate to 13,000 and estimated deaths hit 730.

Though COVID cases are currently low compared to this time last year, other respiratory viruses are beginning to strain health care systems that are still recovering from pandemic burnout. Unusually high cases of respiratory syncytial virus, or RSV, are adding to the expected uptick in COVID-19 and flu as cooler weather moves more people indoors, where airborne viruses often spread more easily.

The U.S. is “experiencing a resurgence in the circulation of non-COVID-19 respiratory viruses,” José Romero, director of CDC’s National Center for Immunization and Respiratory Diseases, said on a call with reporters. “However, it’s important to note that COVID-19 is not gone.”

While shots can help stem flu’s spread, vaccinations in adults are behind last year’s count for this time of year by 5 million doses, U.S. health officials said Friday on a press call. Flu shot coverage among children was relatively equal to that of a year ago, which still meant a 6 percent drop from pre-pandemic levels, officials said.

Health officials also noted unusual patterns in RSV, which causes only cold symptoms in most people, although babies and the elderly can suffer from serious illness. The virus is linked to 58,000 to 80,000 hospitalizations among children under age 5 along with 60,000 to 120,000 among people older than 65 each year, according to the CDC’s website. There’s no approved vaccine, although companies including Moderna, Pfizer and GSK have candidates in development.

This year, test detections are increasing in much of the U.S. except for the southeast and south-central regions, which are being hit harder by the flu, according to the CDC. That’s a change from typical RSV seasons in the U.S., which normally begin in the southeast and spread northwest from there.

The increase in respiratory viruses “means that many hospitals are at or near capacity and it is beginning to strain health care systems,” the Association of State and Territorial Health Officials said Wednesday in a statement. Health officials are preparing to help states with additional supplies and personnel, but no states have asked for this support yet, said Dawn O’Connell the Department of Health and Human Services administrator for preparedness and response.