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A4 U.S. NEWS
Saturday 27 January 2018

Flu widespread across US for third straight week

NEW YORK (AP) — Sick with measure is how many peo- Some good news: Hospital
the flu? You've got a lot of ple seek medical care for stays and deaths from the
company. fever, cough, aches and flu among the elderly so far
The flu blanketed the U.S. other flu symptoms. haven't been as high as in
again last week for the third Flu is widespread in every some other recent flu sea-
straight week. Only Hawaii state except Hawaii, with sons. However, hospitaliza-
has been spared. 39 states reporting high tion rates for people 50 to
Last week, 1 in 15 doctor traffic to doctors last week, 64 — baby boomers, mostly
visits were for symptoms up from 32. At this rate, — has been unusually high,
of the flu. That's the high- by the end of the season CDC officials said in the
est level since the swine somewhere around 34 mil- report, which covers the
flu pandemic in 2009. The lion Americans will have week ending Jan. 20.
government doesn't track gotten sick from the flu, the A New York pediatrician
every flu case but comes Centers for Disease Control said her office has been
up with estimates; one and Prevention said Friday. busy but the kids with the

Ana Martinez, a medical assistant at the Sea Mar Community
Health Center, gives a patient a flu shot in Seattle. Flu season
continues to get worse, as this has become the most intense the
country has seen since a pandemic strain hit nine years ago,
U.S. health officials said on Friday, Jan. 26, 2018.
(AP Photo/Ted S. Warren)
flu haven't been quite as ready seems to be easing,
sick as in the past. CDC officials said. "If I was a
"For most of them, their betting man, I'd put money
symptoms are milder," said on it going down," Webby
Dr. Tiffany Knipe. said. "But I've lost money on
This year's flu shot targets bets before." The season
the strains that are making usually peaks in February,
Americans sick, mostly the but this season started early
H3N2 flu virus. But exactly and took off in December.
how well it is working won't Flu is a contagious respi-
be known until next month. ratory illness. It can cause
It's the same main bug from a miserable but relatively
last winter, when the flu mild illness in many people,
season wasn't so bad. It's but more a more severe ill-
not clear why this season ness in others. Young chil-
— with the same bug — is dren and the elderly are
worse, some experts said. at greatest risk from flu and
"That's the kicker. This virus its complications. In a bad
really doesn't look that dif- season, there are as many
ferent from what we saw as 56,000 deaths connect-
last year," said Richard ed to the flu. In the U.S.,
Webby, a flu researcher annual flu shots are rec-
at St. Jude Children's Re- ommended for everyone
search Hospital in Memphis. age 6 months or older. Last
It may be that many of season, about 47 percent
the people getting sick this of Americans got vacci-
year managed to avoid in- nated, according to CDC
fection last year. Or there figures. Jennifer Manton
may be some change in didn't get a flu shot and
the virus that hasn't been got sick about two weeks
detected yet, said the ago, hit by high fever and
CDC's Dr. Dan Jernigan, in body aches. She missed
a call with reporters Friday. two days of work at a New
Based on patterns from York law firm, and felt bad
past seasons, it's likely the for about 10 days.
flu season will start to wane "I had not had the flu since
soon, experts say. There are 1996," said the 48-year-old
some places, like Califor- Manton. "It's been 22 years
nia, where the season al- since I felt that badly." q