Flu hospitalizations hit decade high amid early viral surge
Flu hospitalization rates are higher than seen in the past decade, the CDC said, as RSV and other respiratory viruses also spread rapidly.
The U.S. is seeing the highest flu hospitalization rates in a decade for this time of year, the Centers for Disease Control and Prevention said Friday, with people ages 65 and up hit the hardest, followed by young children.
The rise comes as other respiratory viruses, including respiratory syncytial virus, or RSV, are also spreading early and rapidly.
Common winter viruses tend to peak in December and January — not October and November — though it's unclear how the early and intense spread of respiratory viruses will ultimately play out this season.
"Right now, we're not seeing anything that would lead us to believe that it is more severe," Lynnette Brammer, team lead of the domestic influenza surveillance team at the CDC, said of the flu during a media briefing Friday. "It's just early right now."
Flu cases surge to highest number in 13 yearsOct. 28, 202201:30Still, Dawn O’Connell, assistant secretary for preparedness and response at the Department of Health and Human Services, warned that the U.S. will undoubtably "face some challenges this winter."
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