What viruses are going around right now 2012

HealthDay —Flu is making a comeback in the United States this year, with cases rising around the country even as the Omicron variant is surging, infectious disease experts say.

Lurie Children's Hospital of Chicago. All regions of the country have reported H3N2 influenza cases, and flu activity has reached moderate levels in at least nine states, according to the U.

Centers for Disease Control and Prevention. Experts are concerned that influenza could surge at the same time as Omicron , flooding hospital emergency rooms.

Most flu that's been detected this season is the H3N2 strain, and most infections have occurred among children and young adults 5 to 24 , the CDC said.

However, infections among the middle aged and seniors have started to climb. The flu season essentially didn't exist. COVID lockdowns and preventive measures such as masking and social distancing kept flu cases at a historic low. I can't recall another time in history that has happened, since testing's been available.

But all those COVID restrictions have relaxed now, leaving people more exposed to both the coronavirus and influenza. For example, kids are back in school and they are known sources of viral transmission, Binnicker said. People also are having more get-togethers, wearing masks less often, and traveling more both around the country and internationally, said Dr. Abinash Virk, a Mayo Clinic infectious disease doctor. We don't know how high it's going to be, but that's something that we're watching," she said.

There also are troubling early signs that fewer people are getting the flu vaccine this year compared to last. We don't know. We think we may, but we don't know yet. Early reports have also indicated there might be a mismatch between this year's flu vaccine and the most prevalent strain of influenza, but experts warned that the findings are preliminary and haven't been confirmed by the CDC.

Virk agreed that even a mismatched flu shot will provide some protection, and urges people to get the jab as soon as possible. It's a good idea for you to get the vaccine even now. However, that peak could come later this time around, given trends in virus transmission, Tan said. It's going to be very, very difficult to determine at least at this point when influenza is going to peak.

Wear a mask indoors, avoid large gatherings, stay home and get your vaccinations. They're going to take every single opportunity to cause an infection. All rights reserved. Use this form if you have come across a typo, inaccuracy or would like to send an edit request for the content on this page. For general inquiries, please use our contact form. For general feedback, use the public comments section below please adhere to guidelines.

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You can unsubscribe at any time and we'll never share your details to third parties. More information Privacy policy. This site uses cookies to assist with navigation, analyse your use of our services, collect data for ads personalisation and provide content from third parties. Multiple respiratory viruses are co-circulating, and the relative contribution of influenza virus infection to ILI varies by location.

Data from this subset of providers are used to calculate the percentages of patient visits for respiratory illness by age group. Differences in the data presented here by CDC and independently by some health departments likely represent differing levels of data completeness with data presented by the health department likely being the more complete.

LTCFs e. During week 52, 1. Additional information about long-term care facility surveillance: Surveillance Methods Additional Data external icon. FluSurv-NET hospitalization data are preliminary. Case counts and rates for recent hospital admissions are subject to reporting delays; these delays are likely to be more pronounced around holidays.

As hospitalization data are received each week, prior case counts and rates are updated accordingly. As such, end-of-season rates for any given week may vary substantially from in-season reported rates. A total of laboratory-confirmed influenza-associated hospitalizations were reported by FluSurv-NET sites between October 1, , and January 1, The overall cumulative hospitalization rate was 2.

This cumulative hospitalization rate is higher than the cumulative in-season hospitalization rate observed in week 52 during the season 0.

Among hospitalizations, View Full Screen. Hospitals report to HHS-Protect the number of patients admitted with laboratory-confirmed influenza. During week 52, 2, patients with laboratory-confirmed influenza were admitted to the hospital. This percentage is above the epidemic threshold of 6. The data presented are preliminary and may change as more data are received and processed. A total of two influenza-associated pediatric deaths occurring during the season have been reported to CDC.

Additional pediatric mortality surveillance information for current and past seasons: Surveillance Methods FluView Interactive.

FluView Interactive: FluView includes enhanced web-based interactive applications that can provide dynamic visuals of the influenza data collected and analyzed by CDC. These FluView Interactive applications allow people to create customized, visual interpretations of influenza data, as well as make comparisons across flu seasons, regions, age groups and a variety of other demographics.

State and local influenza surveillance: Select a jurisdiction below to access the latest local influenza information. Any links provided to non-Federal organizations are provided solely as a service to our users. These links do not constitute an endorsement of these organizations or their programs by CDC or the Federal Government, and none should be inferred. CDC is not responsible for the content of the individual organization web pages found at these links.

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Facebook Twitter LinkedIn Syndicate. Weekly U. All data are preliminary and may change as more reports are received. Key Updates for Week 52, ending January 1, Clinical Lab.

Public Health Lab. The majority of viruses detected are influenza A H3N2. Virus Characterization. Genetic characterization data are now being reported. Illness Outpatient Respiratory Illness. Outpatient Respiratory Illness: Activity Map. Geographic Spread. Long-term Care Facilities. HHS Protect Hospitalizations. NCHS Mortality. Pediatric Deaths. Key Points Influenza activity is increasing, with the eastern and central parts of the country seeing the majority of viruses reported and the western part of the country reporting lower levels of influenza virus circulation.

The majority of influenza viruses detected are A H3N2. Earlier in the season, most influenza A H3N2 infections occurred among children and young adults ages years; however, in recent weeks, the proportion of infections occurring among other age groups, especially adults age 25 years and older, has been increasing.

Most of the H3N2 viruses so far are genetically closely related to the vaccine virus, but there are some antigenic differences that have developed as H3N2 viruses have continued to evolve.

The percentage of outpatient visits due to respiratory illness continues to increase and is above the national baseline. Influenza is contributing to levels of respiratory illness, but other respiratory viruses are also circulating.

The relative contribution of influenza varies by location. Hospitalizations for influenza continue to increase. The cumulative hospitalization rate in the FluSurv-NET system is higher than the rate for the entire season, but lower than the rate seen at this time during the four seasons preceding the COVID pandemic.

The flu season is just getting started. An annual flu vaccine is the best way to protect against flu and its potentially serious complications.

CDC recommends everyone 6 months and older get a flu vaccine. There are early signs that flu vaccination uptake is down this season compared to last. Flu vaccines are available at many different locations, including pharmacies and health departments. With flu activity just getting started, there is still time to benefit from flu vaccination this season.

Visit www. There are also flu antiviral drugs that can be used to treat flu illness. Virologic Surveillance Reporting delays due to the holiday may have impacted week 52 virologic data; therefore, testing numbers and percent positivity should be interpreted with caution.