Helen Branswell πŸ‡¨πŸ‡¦ Profile picture
Jan 14, 2022 β€’ 7 tweets β€’ 4 min read β€’ Read on X
1. A #flu 🧡, based on U.S. data for the week ending Jan. 8.
There has been another pediatric death from flu, the third this season. It occurred in the week leading up to Christmas. Pediatric flu deaths are still at very low levels relative to regular flu years, thankfully. Image
2. #Flu activity is still at low levels & it actually dropped last week. Is that because of data filing delays over the holidays? Because people are avoiding health care because of Covid? Or is Omicron somehow crowding out flu? Need someone smarter than me to answer that Q. Image
3. Hospital admissions for flu decreased a little last week. That probably suggests some decline in #flu activity.
Will flu activity pick up again? Most flu seasons don't peak until late January, into February. The size of the Omicron wave, though, could be an influence here. Image
4. #Flu hospitalizations this year are very low, still, compared to pre-pandemic flu seasons. This year's rate so far is above last year's (almost no flu) & the very mild 2015-16 season. But it's far below most recent years. Image
5. A reason for that very low #flu hospitalization rate probably lies here. Only 1.3% of long-term care facilities reported having one or more flu cases among residents. In a regular flu season you'd see a lot more flu in LTCFs. Image
6. Virtually all the #flu viruses that have been typed in the U.S. so far this season have been H3N2 (a flu A virus). Activity around the country is sporadic, with some places reporting little (green) & others a lot (red). Check out ND, SD & Minn. How does that happen? Image
7. The source of these data is @CDCgov's FluView, found here: cdc.gov/flu/weekly/

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More from @HelenBranswell

Jun 22
1. Some thoughts on #H5N1 #birdflu in cows. A 🧡
A bunch of new herds were announced by a couple of states today β€”Β Colorado and Iowa. The former reported +5 & looks like it may have another pending; It now has 18 in total, maybe 19. Iowa reported 2 more, taking it to 10.
2. To the best of my ability to keep up β€”Β and that's being challenged β€” I think there have been 125 herds reported in 12 states since the end of March. This graph combines @USDA's numbers from yesterday with the newly reported herds from Colorado & Iowa. Image
3. But @USDA threw a wrench into the works today. It updated its exceedingly wonky #H5N1 #birdflu in cows landing site. Some things work better, but the cumulative number of herds was lowered by 4 (from yday) with no explanation. USDA now says 112 herds in 12 states. Image
Read 8 tweets
Apr 26
1. @USDA posted an FAQ today about the federal order restricting movement of dairy cattle infected with
#H5N1 #birdflu. Interesting information therein.
A 🧡
New to me: USDA says 8 poultry operations in 5 states have had poultry outbreaks with the virus detected in cows. Image
2. Minnesota hasn't reported #H5N1 #birdflu in cattle, but it has had at least 1 poultry outbreak with the cattle virus, @USDA reveals. More evidence, probably, that the virus is far more widely spread than has been realized. The FAQ is here: aphis.usda.gov/sites/default/…
3. The federal order on the movement of dairy cows goes into effect 4/29. @USDA is setting what looks like an ambitious timeline for processing of tests, especially "non-negative" tests that must then go for confirmatory testing at the USDA lab in Ames, Iowa. #H5N1 #birdflu Image
Read 7 tweets
Apr 25
1. Listening to an @ASTHO - @IDSAInfo - @CSTEnews webinar on #H5N1 #birdflu in cows.
Of interest so far:
β€” @USDA is monitoring feral swine; no detections of H5 so far.
β€” in the "small number" of samples tested to date, doesn't look like cows are shedding virus thru feces.
2. @USDA Rosemary Sifford said the infections are "mostly" being seen in lactating herds.
1 herd was found to be positive despite the fact there were no clinical signs among the cows.
Sifford said USDA doesn't yet know how long infected cows shed virus.
#H5N1 #birdflu
@USDA 3. Sonja Olsen from @CDC says there've been 6 infections detected in cats on dairy farms. Not sure I've seen the exact number. #H5N1 #BirdFlu
Read 16 tweets
Apr 19
1. A 🧡 on #flu, #Covid & #RSV (mostly flu). The
#influenza-like illness season is pretty much over. The percentage of people seeking care for ILIs is below 2.9%, that dotted line. You can catch flu at any time of the year, but chances of catching it now thru the summer are low. Image
2. It's not just #flu. #Covid activity now is at low levels nationally and #RSV activity has declined to the point where @CDCgov says the season is ending. Hallelujah.
cdc.gov/respiratory-vi…
Image
3. It hasn't been a particularly bad #flu season, but the estimated number of hospitalizations for flu has been pretty high β€” one of the highest in recent years. (red line) The 2017-18 season, which was harsh, was worse. CDC estimates there were 370K hospitalizations this year. Image
Read 5 tweets
Feb 9
1. A 🧡on #flu & #Covid activity trends based on reports today from @CDCgov. Most of the data is for the week ending Feb. 3. The #influenza-like illness (ILI) season seems to have peaked at the end of Dec, with declines in flu, Covid & #RSV since then. But the season isn't over. Image
2. There was a bit of an uptick in #flu activity in the central & south central US. It corresponds with an increase in flu B detections there. Pre-Covid, flu B often arrived in a late season wave. We may see that again this year.
Map on left is the week ending 1/27; right is 2/3.
Image
Image
3. An additional 8 pediatric #flu deaths were reported to @CDCgov in the wk ending 2/3. The season's death toll in kids now stands at 74, which is awful, obviously, but not as bad as most years pre-Covid. But if there's a lot of flu B activity, this number could climb. Image
Read 5 tweets
Jan 5
1. Traditionally I've done #flu updates on Fridays, but given our new reality β€” #Covid is here to stay β€” & the expansion of data on @CDCgov's website, I'm going to broaden the scope going forward. Top line news: Lotta illness out there right now.
cdc.gov/respiratory-vi…
2. Most parts of the country are ensconced in #influenza-like illness season right now. (Minn, what are you doing to stay so healthy?) This graphic doesn't just represent #flu activity; #Covid, #RSV & other ILIs are also captured here. @CDCgov's FluView: cdc.gov/flu/weekly/
Image
3. #Flu is the most common bug making people sick right now, but there's a lot of #Covid going around too. (I know from recent experience.) #RSV is still fairly active but declining. This breakdown of what's causing most illness is seen both in positive tests & ER visits.
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Read 7 tweets

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