Nov. 29, 2022 — Reports of respiratory illnesses continued to rise as the 2022-2023 flu season maintained its early rush through mid-November, according to the CDC.
Nationally, 6% of all outpatient visits were due to the flu or an influenza-like illness in the week of November 13-19, up from 5.8% in the previous week, the CDC’s Influenza Division said in its report. FluView Weekly Report.
Those numbers are the highest recorded for a November since 2009, but the peak of the 2009-2010 flu season occurred even earlier — the week of October 18-24 — and the incidence of influenza-like illness had already fallen to just over 4.0% by 15-21. November of that year and the decline continued thereafter.
Although COVID-19 and respiratory syncytial virus (RSV) are included in the data from the CDC’s Outpatient Influenza-Like Illness Surveillance Network, the agency noted that “seasonal influenza activity is high across the country” and estimates that there has been At least 6.2 million illnesses, 53,000 hospitalizations, and 2,900 deaths from influenza” during the 2022-23 season.
Total influenza deaths include 11 reported cases in children as of November 19, and children ages 0 to 4 had a higher incidence of visits for a flu-like illness than other age groups.
The agency also said the cumulative hospitalization rate of 11.3 per 100,000 population was “higher than the rate observed in [the corresponding week of] every previous season since 2010-2011.” Adults 65 and older have the highest GPA, 25.9 per 100,000, for the year, compared with 20.7 for kids 0-4; 11.1 for adults 50-64; 10.3 for kids 5-17; and 5.6 for adults who They range in age from 18 to 49, the CDC said.
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