"Doctor visits for flulike illnesses in the U.S. have reached their highest level in the nearly 30 years that the CDC has tracked the statistic, according to the country's top public health body. More than 8 percent of all visits to a health care provider in the week ending on December 27 were for respiratory illnessthe highest rate since the CDC started keeping tabs on such visits in 1997."
"At the local level, some 45 states saw high or very high influenzalike activity. The new numbers don't cover the full post-holiday-travel period, so the rates of doctor visits and hospitalizations could yet rise. A new variant of the influenza A strain H3N2 that is known as subclade K may be driving up infections: the variant has been shown to carry mutations that may make this year's flu vaccine less effective. But the shots still provide some protection, especially against severe disease and death, experts say."
CDC data show that U.S. doctor visits for flulike illness reached the highest level since 1997, with more than 8 percent of visits in the week ending December 27 for respiratory illness. So far this season influenza has caused over 120,000 hospitalizations and about 5,000 deaths, including nine children. Approximately 45 states reported high or very high influenzalike activity. The new figures predate the full post-holiday-travel period, so healthcare use and hospitalizations could increase. A new H3N2 subclade K variant carries mutations that may reduce this season's vaccine effectiveness. Vaccination still provides some protection, especially against severe disease and death.
Read at www.scientificamerican.com
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