Nov. 28, 2023 -- The rate of flu infections keeps rising in the U.S., according to the latest report from the CDC.
For the week ending Nov. 18, “Seasonal influenza activity continues to increase in most parts of the country, most notably in the South Central, Southeast, Mountain, and West Coast regions,” said the government report issued Monday.
“CDC estimates that there have been at least 1.2 million illnesses, 12,000 hospitalizations, and 740 deaths from flu so far this season.”
The CDC recommends flu vaccinations for everyone 6 months and older and prescription antiviral drugs after diagnosis.
The figures show a 4.9% increase in flu positivity, up 0.5 percentage points from the previous week.
“Respiratory viruses made up 3.7% of outpatient healthcare visits, which are at or above baseline in 7 of 10 Health and Human Services regions for the third week in a row,” reported the University of Minnesota’s CIDRAP.
The CDC report says, the highest cumulative hospitalization rate per 100,000 population was among adults aged 65 years and older, followed by adults aged 50-64 years, and children aged 0-4 years.
The overall cumulative hospitalization rate was 2.6 per 100,000 population, second only to last year for the same week.
A total of 0.07% of all deaths were attributed to the flu. Those included two children. Of the 529 virus stains reported by public health labs, about 80% were influenza A and 20% influenza B.
The report shows that about 12,000 people have been hospitalized so far this season, with 740 dying.