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Emergency nurses and paramedics attend to patients in the hallways of Houston Methodist The Woodlands Hospital on August 18, 2021 in Houston, Texas.
Brandon Bell | Getty Images
Flu cases are on the rise in the United States. It could put pressure on hospitals already struggling with a wave of Covid.
The so-called ‘twindemia’ – what public health experts have dubbed the combination of influenza and Covid – could accelerate at holiday gatherings this week.
“The biggest problem we face is a complete overload of our health care capacity,” said Shira Shafir, professor of epidemiology at the University of California, Los Angeles.
“When we have the transmission of Covid, plus the flu, plus all the other things someone might need to go to the hospital for … we potentially don’t have the capacity to care for all of these people anymore. “, added Shafir.
Hospital admissions for the flu rose nearly 34% in the past week, hitting a seven-day average of nearly 250 a day on Thursday, according to data from the US Department of Health and Human Services . The average number of daily admissions never exceeded 125 during the last influenza season.
About 8,400 Covid patients have been admitted to U.S. hospitals every day on average over the past week, data shows, up 5% from a week ago but below the peak level of the wave delta of more than 12,000 daily admissions during the summer.
The United States had virtually no flu season last year, as public health protocols aimed at slowing the transmission of the coronavirus also prevented the flu from spreading, Shafir said. Flu cases hit an all-time high last season, according to the Centers for Disease Control and Prevention.
Flu season has returned as US officials relaxed restrictions such as wearing masks and limited gatherings with the Covid vaccines available this year.
This means Americans could have reduced immunity to the flu, CDC says said earlier this fall.
Scientists design influenza vaccines each year to match the strains they predict to be most common. Less data from last year means this year’s shooting is a bad game, scientists said.
“We expect people to be less protected from the flu than they would in a normal flu situation because we didn’t have a flu season last year,” Shafir said. “It makes people particularly vulnerable to the flu this year.”
About 48% of U.S. adults have received a flu shot, according to a CDC survey conducted between December 2 and 13. Another 9.5% said they plan to get it.
Total vaccine coverage projected for the 2021-2022 influenza season is 57.2%, the agency said, up 3.4 percentage points from the vaccination rate reported last season.
“The worrying part is that the flu shot rates for this time of year are drastically down from what they usually are this time of year as we move into this rallying time. a vacation, ”said Dr. Jim Conway, medical director of the immunization program. at the University of Wisconsin School of Medicine and Public Health.
Holiday gatherings
The holidays could exacerbate the spread of the flu, as people with negative symptoms for Covid can proceed to gatherings and spread the flu, according to Shafir.
“Even if someone has a negative Covid test, they could still have something else that they could pass on to the people in their life,” Shafir said.
The epidemiologist has recommended that people with symptoms like a cough, sore throat or runny nose stay home. Wearing a mask, ventilation and, if possible, gathering outside are strategies that could help slow the spread, she said.
Health officials are also recommending Covid vaccines and booster doses, as well as the flu shot to help protect individuals. The rapidly spreading omicron variant of Covid has propelled the surge in cases, but research has shown that it is not as severe as the other variants. Studies have shown that vaccines and boosters provide increased protection.
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