For more than two years, Americans were spared from the flu and other respiratory infections because of closed schools and offices. There is a chance that this winter will be different.
With few to no restrictions in place and travel back in full swing, an expected winter rise in Covid cases appears poised to collide with a resurgence of the flu.
The cases of flu have begun to increase earlier than usual, and are expected to increase over the next few weeks. Children who have been exposed to R.S.V. are straining hospitals in several states.
A doctor at Seattle Children's Hospital and an infectious diseases expert at Fred Hutchinson Cancer Center said that everything is coming back with a vengeance.
Most cases of Covid, flu and R.S.V. are likely to be mild, but together they could sicken millions of Americans and swamp hospitals.
Andrew Read is a microbiologist at Penn State University. We are in a new area here.
The best protection against severe illness and death is still offered by the vaccines for Covid and flu. Everyone should get their shots as soon as possible.
Older adults, immunocompromised people and pregnant women are most at risk.
Up to 300 deaths among children under 5 are caused by R.S.V. Two candidates are in late-stage clinical trials and appear to be highly effective in older adults. The drug is being developed by Pfizer.
We are seeing the same number of Covid, flu and R.S.V., which is concerning because we are very early for flu and R.S.V.
He predicted a rough winter.
Some parts of the country are seeing an increase in coronaviruses. Several European countries, including France, Germany and Britain, are experiencing an increase in hospitalizations and deaths, prompting experts to worry that the US will follow suit.
Drugs such as Evusheld and Bebtelovimab are important for protecting immunocompromised people because of the ability of some coronaviruses to dodge immunity.
Even though people get all of the recommended vaccine, they are still at risk.
Public health experts are worried about a constellation of Omicron variants that seem to dodge immunity from the vaccines and even from recent infections.
The newer versions of the booster vaccines made by Pfizer and Moderna were not designed for them. They help stave off severe symptoms and abridge the duration of illness, according to the University of Michigan.
The most immune evasive variant until recently was the BA.5 variant, which is being replaced by others.
BQ. 1.1 is the leading candidate for causing a winter wave and it has already sent cases soaring in Europe. The BQ.1 variant has grown in share from 3 percent to 11 percent in two weeks.
A wave of cases in Singapore has been caused by a combination of two Omicron subvariants. XBB.1 has arrived in the US. It is so far responsible for less than 2% of cases nationwide, but is also a highly immune evasive variant.
The trend toward immune evasiveness is likely to continue despite the fact that most of the other variants don't cause more severe symptoms.
The immunity that people have against previous versions has shifted the situation.
Only a small percentage of people who qualify for a shot have received a booster designed for them by the FDA. The primary series of Covid vaccines has only been completed by a small number of children.
People may see a rapid rise in cases.
Flu viruses killed tens of thousands of Americans before the coronaviruses hit. 13 million medical visits, 380,000 hospitalizations and 28,000 deaths were caused by the flu in the last fiscal year.
Between May and October is when the southern hemisphere's flu season begins. The number of cases and hospitalizations in Australia and New Zealand were much higher this year than in the past.
There is one flu season in June and July and a bigger one in the fall for children in Nicaragua. More than 90 percent of the population was fully vaccined against Covid by January 2022, and many people had gained immunity from infections.
In the first half of the year, the country had high rates of both Covid and flu. The children were sicker than in the past, and the incidence of flu was higher. There were a lot of hospitalizations.
In the United States, the flu usually starts in October and lasts through March. In some states, the season is already under way.
According to the C.D.C., 3 percent of tests nationwide turned up positive for the flu, but the rates are higher in some states and lower in others. In Texas, the proportion of tests positive for flu increased from the previous week.
The use of ventilators is increasing in some southern states. The flu was already widespread in New York.
Public health experts are urging Americans to get a flu shot. Even though the flu vaccine may not be a perfect match for the circulating variant, it still reduces the risk of hospitalization in both children and adults.
The vaccine may extend protection through the winter wave better than one received in September because the antibodies kick in two weeks after the shot.
According to an analysis by the C.D.C., the flu vaccine rate decreased in all age groups last year.
The lower rate may be due to the fact that parents have forgotten about the dangers of the flu, or that they have lost trust in Covid vaccines. It's too early to know if the numbers will improve this year.
Public health experts said older adults and people with compromised immune systems should get a flu shot. If healthy young adults don't want to get sick or can't afford to miss work, they might want to get both vaccines.
Some communities are more likely to be hospitalized for the flu. Black adults were 80 percent more likely to be hospitalized for the flu than whites, American Indian/Alaska Native adults were 30 percent more likely to be hospitalized than whites, and Hispanic adults were 20 percent more likely to be hospitalized than whites.
The flu vaccine rates in these groups were not as high. There was a decline in vaccine coverage in pregnant women from the previous year.
Dr. Gordon was going to speak to her daughter's class about the coronaviruses when a boy in the class died of the flu.
Sometimes the flu makes you sick but most of the time it doesn't. I would encourage people to get a vaccine against flu.
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