The flu virus takes hold of college campuses

Thousands of students have already contracted the flu this fall as the virus ravages college and university campuses, even as health centers work to keep COVID-19 cases at bay.

After a nearly non-existent flu season last winter, the familiar virus is back, said William Schaffner, professor of infectious diseases at Vanderbilt University Medical Center.

“Last year we had a historically low flu rate because we were socially distanced, wore masks, virtually attended a lot of activities and our kids weren’t going to school either,” said Schaffner. “Now we open up, try to take off our masks, and go back to in-person activities, including on college campuses. So we expect, of course, that it will be back. “

Colleges and university health teams are on high alert due to the lingering possibility of a COVID-19 outbreak this fall. Now they are also working to prevent the spread of the flu as students prepare to go home for Thanksgiving. Experts say flu shots are key to stopping the spread of the virus on campuses.

The University of Michigan at Ann Arbor is currently battling a particularly serious epidemic. Nearly 530 students have been diagnosed with the flu since early October, according to A press release. Last week, the university identified 313 cases of the flu, reflecting a test positivity rate of 37%. The previous week, Michigan documented 198 cases, with a test positivity rate of 27.2%.

“While we often start to see influenza activity now, the size of this outbreak is unusual,” Juan Luis Marquez, medical director of the Washtenaw County Health Department, said in the press release.

More than three-quarters of students who tested positive for the flu have not been vaccinated against the virus this year. University officials are urging students and employees to get the flu shot as soon as possible.

The outbreak will not necessarily have an immediate impact on residents of Ann Arbor, “but it raises concerns about what the flu season may bring,” Marquez said.

The county health department and the Michigan Department of Health and Human Services are investigating the outbreak with help from the Centers for Disease Control and Prevention. Experts are looking to determine the effectiveness of the flu vaccine in preventing disease and to assess how the virus is spread across campus.

“The partnership with the CDC will accelerate our understanding of how this flu season can play out regionally and nationally amid the COVID-19 pandemic,” said Lindsey Mortenson, interim executive director of the University Health Service, in a press release.

Some flu experts worry that low exposure to last year’s flu virus may have weakened people’s immune systems, Schaffner said. As a result, the country could experience a more extreme flu season.

Even so, “speculating about the flu is futile because it is very difficult to predict,” he said. “I can’t tell you if it will be a mild, moderate or severe season.”

Officials at the University of Georgia are also urging students to get the flu shot as the university works to prevent a widespread epidemic. The Banner-Herald of Athens reported on Monday that several Georgian football players and coaches were battling the flu. About 80 to 85 percent of the football team have received the flu shot this year, but some have contracted the disease anyway, coach Kirby Smart told the Banner-Herald.

“With the onset of flu season throughout the region, the University Health Center sees an increase in influenza cases on campus and continues to provide both preventative care and treatment options to the community. scholar, ”Rod Guajardo, spokesperson for the University of Georgia. , said in a statement Tuesday. Guajardo did not say how many Georgian students tested positive for the flu this fall.

Rowan University in Glassboro, New Jersey is also struggling with a flu epidemic on campus. Over 100 students were diagnosed with the flu this month, Phillyvoice reported. Florida State University has seen more than 20 new cases of the flu a day, the university’s director of health services told the Tallahassee Democrat. Neighboring Florida A&M University counted 102 new cases of the flu last Wednesday alone.

“We see a lot of cases of the flu,” said Tanya Tatum, director of health services at Florida A&M. Democrat. “I am preoccupied.”

Officials from Rowan, Florida State, and Florida A&M are encouraging students and employees to get the flu shot, but they haven’t requested the shots. Some institutions, such as the University of Southern California and McDaniel College in Westminster, Maryland, have chosen to require flu shots this fall.

“While we initially strongly encouraged students to get the flu shot, we believe it is now necessary, with the flu season, to require students to provide the wellness center with documents proving they were vaccinated against the flu before returning to campus in the New Year, ”McDaniel officials wrote in an email to students in October.

Students often skip the flu shot, said Sarah Van Orman, health manager at USC Student Health. Typically, only 20 to 40 percent of people aged 18 to 24 receive the flu shot each year.

“It’s not a very high uptake of the flu vaccine in this typical college age population,” Van Orman said. “But with concerns about COVID-19 and the flu, we are seeing much higher influenza vaccine uptake. “

In a year without a pandemic, flu epidemics on campuses often go unnoticed, Van Orman said. Residential college students are, for the most part, young and healthy, and they do not often end up in hospital with influenza infection. That said, most establishments see some sort of flu epidemic every winter.

Schaffner and Van Orman both stressed the importance of the influenza vaccine in fighting such epidemics.

“A lot of people don’t take advantage of it because it’s not a perfect vaccine. Sometimes you will get the flu even though you have had the vaccine, ”Schaffner said. “I remind them that if [they get the vaccine], they are very likely to have a milder infection, an infection that is less likely to require medical attention. While that doesn’t completely prevent your illness, you’re more likely to pick up the pace a day or two earlier, and that’s worth a lot when you’re a student.