Outpatient Respiratory Illness Activity Map
Data collected in ILINet are used to produce a measure of ILI activity* by state/jurisdiction and Core Based Statistical Areas .
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*Data collected in ILINet may disproportionally represent certain populations within a jurisdiction or CBSA, and therefore, may not accurately depict the full picture of influenza activity for the entire jurisdiction or CBSA. Differences in the data presented here by CDC and independently by some health departments likely represent differing levels of data completeness with data presented by the health department likely being the more complete.
Additional information about medically attended visits for ILI for current and past seasons:
Seasonal Influenza In Alberta
Influenza data included in the interactive data application are aggregated by week and up-to-date as of end of week 27 , unless stated otherwise.
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Figure 1: Laboratory-confirmed influenza cases by subtype
Figure 2: Laboratory-confirmed influenza cases by subtype from the previous five seasons
Figure 3: Laboratory-confirmed seasonal influenza cases in Alberta since the 2009-2010 season
How Severe Will The Upcoming 2021
It’s far too soon to say, but experts are still worried about what could happen. “We’re mildly terrified about how things could unfold with flu season this year,” James H. Conway, MD, FAAP, a pediatric infectious disease specialist and associate director for health sciences at the Global Health Institute of UW-Madison, tells Health.
This is for a few reasons. First: Australiawhich has its winter and flu season during summertime in the USdidn’t have a flu season this year. While that could be good news for a less severe season in the US, it also spells trouble for vaccine formulation. “Usually when the powers that be are trying to figure out which strains to put in the vaccine, they are basing it on what circulated in the southern hemisphere during summer,” says Dr. Conway. “They didn’t have any flu season, so the powers that be couldn’t figure out prevalent flu strains.”
The low numbers of flu cases last year could also negatively impact this year’s flu season. With lower-than-usual rates of both flu vaccinations and flu cases, the US population is “relatively immunologically naive,” says Dr. Conwaythat means we don’t have any leftover immunity from last flu season. Pair that with more people going out into public more often with lessening mask restrictions, and it could lead to a potentially more severe flu season than last year.
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National Center For Health Statistics Mortality Surveillance
On June 6, 2022, the National Vital Statistics System cause of death coding system began a system-wide upgrade, which required a temporary suspension of routine NVSS surveillance reporting.The upgrade required all 2022 death records to be reprocessed into the system.As routine NVSS surveillance reporting resumes, users may temporarily observe lower death counts for prior weeks in 2022 as the backlog is reprocessed and reloaded into the system.
Based on NCHS mortality surveillance data available on July 14, 2022, 8.8% of the deaths that occurred during the week ending July 9, 2022 , were due to pneumonia, influenza, and/or COVID-19 . This percentage is above the epidemic threshold of 5.7% for this week. Among the 1,796 PIC deaths reported for this week, 876 had COVID-19 listed as an underlying or contributing cause of death on the death certificate, and 13 listed influenza, indicating that current PIC mortality is due primarily to COVID-19 and not influenza. The data presented are preliminary and may change as more data are received and processed.
Surveillance Methods | FluView Interactive
How Is Flu Data Different From Covid
The flu and COVID-19 are different, though they do have similar symptoms that can make it hard to tell them apart. One of the key ways that we can keep track of all the data is by testing people who have symptoms to find out if they have the flu, COVID, or another kind of respiratory illness.
Clinical labs and public health departments both test specimens to look for signs of the flu, but each has a different goal.
Clinical labs are more geared toward providing a flu diagnosis while public health labs are looking at the larger trends in flu illnessfor example, which subtypes of the flu are circulating and how quickly cases of the flu are growing in different places and among different groups of people.
Public health departments often test samples that were already tested in clinical labs to look for a diagnosis, which is why the CDC tracks specimens tested by each type of lab separately to make sure that the numbers are not duplicated .
Some specimens tested for the flu might also be tested for COVID at the same time, or, if the flu test is negative, a person might need a COVID test next. This will probably be more common in the winter months when both types of viruses end up circulating at the same time.
Eventually, we may reach a point where we have a recurring “COVID season” like the annual flu season. For now, public health authorities are trying to follow both illnesses as they move through communities and report the data separately.
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Getting A Flu Vaccine During The Covid
Yes. Getting a flu vaccine is an essential part of protecting your health and your familys health this season. To protect your health when getting a flu vaccine, follow CDCs recommendations for running essential errands and doctor visits. Continue to take everyday preventive actions.
When going to get a flu vaccine, practice everyday preventive actions and follow CDC recommendations for running essential errands.
Ask your doctor, pharmacist, or health department if they are following CDCs vaccination pandemic guidance. Any vaccination location following CDCs guidance should be a safe place for you to get a flu vaccine.
You can safely get a flu vaccine at multiple locations including your doctors office, health departments, and pharmacies. You can use VaccineFinder.orgexternal iconexternal icon to find where flu vaccines are available near you. When going to get a flu vaccine, be sure to practice everyday preventive actions.
Ask your doctor, pharmacist, or health department if they are following CDCs vaccination pandemic guidance. Any vaccination location following CDCs guidance should be a safe place for you to get a flu vaccine.
Vaccination of people at high risk for flu complications is especially important to decrease their risk of severe flu illness. Many people at higher risk from flu also seem to be at higher risk from COVID-19. If you are at high risk, it is especially important for you to get a flu vaccine this year.
Final Flu Season Metrics 2020/21
Each flu season, the CDC tracks a few important metrics that help tell the story of how severe the current flu season is compared to previous seasons. Here are a few numbers to sum up the 2020/2021 flu season, running from October 1, 2020 to April 1, 2021.
Mortality – The PIC mortality rate is the rate of deaths attributed to pneumonia, influenza, or COVID-19. This year, the majority of PIC deaths were due to COVID-19. 646 deaths were attributed to the flu.
Pediatric Deaths – Pediatric deaths are the number of deaths of people under the age of 18. In 2019/20, there were 195 pediatric deaths. There was one pediatric death during the 2020/21 season.
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How Effective Is The 2021 Flu Vaccine
Flu vaccines in general reduce the risk of influenza infection by 40-60 percent.
Each year, researchers in the United States analyze data about influenza from around the country, then design a vaccine to protect against the four most common variants of the flu. The vaccine is then referred to the FDAs Vaccines and Related Biological Products Advisory Committee , which makes the recommendation on how to proceed.
The vaccine developed for the 2021-2022 flu season is similar to the flu vaccine from the 2020-2021 flu season, but is also matched with currently circulating flu viruses. This resulted in the addition of two updates with influenza A and the influenza A vaccine virus components, according to the CDC.
The flu shot is the best way to protect yourself and your loved ones from getting sick, said Michael Mancenido, MD, an infectious disease specialist with Rochester Regional Health. Flu shots are available at most local pharmacies, primary care offices, and community health clinics. Many of these places allow for walk-in appointments, so take some time to protect your health and get the flu shot.
Flu season runs from early October through late May, with most cases picking up in late January to early February. Stay protected against any strains of the virus by getting vaccinated.
Keeping Track Of Flu In Minnesota
Many people get sick with flu every year in Minnesota without ever seeing a doctor or reporting their illness. Therefore, MDH uses various indicators to find out how widespread the flu is in Minnesota each week, rather than trying to track every case. The MDH Public Health Laboratory also tests selected influenza specimens to monitor which flu strains are circulating each flu season.
Hospitalized Surveillance
Hospitals report to MDH when they have a patient admitted to the hospital with laboratory-confirmed influenza. Hospitals are asked to submit specimens to MDH-PHL for influenza testing. MDH provides guidance on infection control and outbreak management, including the use of antiviral medication for treatment and prevention.
Sentinel Surveillance
Physicians and health care providers across the state help to monitor influenza throughout the flu season. Sentinel providers fill out a weekly report detailing the number of patients they’ve seen with influenza-like illness. They also submit additional influenza specimens to the MDH Public Health Lab according to the Sentinel Surveillance program guidelines.
Long-Term Care Facility Surveillance
Facilities report to MDH when they have a suspected or laboratory confirmed influenza outbreak. Specimens can be submitted to MDH-PHL for influenza testing. MDH provides guidance on infection control and outbreak management, including the use of antiviral medication for treatment and prevention.
School Surveillance
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Outpatient Respiratory Illness Surveillance
The U.S. Outpatient Influenza-like Illness Surveillance Network monitors outpatient visits for influenza-like illness , not laboratory-confirmed influenza, and will therefore capture respiratory illness visits due to infection with any pathogen that can present with similar symptoms, including influenza, SARS-CoV-2, and RSV. Due to the COVID-19 pandemic, health care-seeking behaviors have changed, and people may be accessing the health care system in alternative settings not captured as a part of ILINet or at a different point in their illness than they might have before the pandemic. Therefore, it is important to evaluate syndromic surveillance data, including that from ILINet, in the context of other sources of surveillance data to obtain a complete and accurate picture of influenza, SARS-CoV-2, and other respiratory virus activity. CDC is tracking the COVID-19 pandemic in a weekly publication called COVID Data Tracker Weekly Review. Information about other respiratory virus activity can be found on CDCs National Respiratory and Enteric Virus Surveillance System website.
How Can You Protect Yourself From The Flu
The straightforward answer here: Get vaccinated ASAP. “The only protection people can get is getting vaccinated and being careful about respiratory viruses,” says Dr. Conway.
The CDC recommends that everyone 6 months and older get a flu vaccine every year. It’s the first and most important step that people can take to guard against the flu and its complications. The flu can be harder to fight off for specific populations, such as infants and young children, the elderly, and people who are immunocompromised due to chronic illnesses such as HIV or cancerso it’s especially for those populations to get vaccinated, possibly with a high-dose flu shot, if approved by their doctor.
Those recommendations put in place for protection against COVID-19 can also come in handy when preventing the flu virus. “Everybody masking during winter months could help a lot with preventing flu deaths,” says Dr. Conway. “That’s done pretty regularly in some areas of the world. That may be as much a part of our major protection as major vaccines.” In addition to that, Dr. Conway suggests that people remain vigilant about staying home from work and school when they’re ill. Proper handwashing and disinfecting surfaces can help keep illnesses at bay, as well.
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This Coming Flu Season Could Be A Lot Worse
Officials are watching what happens in the Southern Hemisphere to see how much flu activity is starting to occur. If flu activity starts to rise in the Southern Hemisphere, it will provide a critical preview of what may be headed toward the United States and how hospitals and health systems can take early, precautionary steps to mitigate the impact. Right now flu activity is still low, but RSV – a respiratory virus is hitting Australia and New Zealand particularly hard.
According to a recent Time Magazine article, RSV cases also are spiking in the U.S., particularly in southern states. Around 2,000 confirmed cases were recorded during the week of July 10, 2021, compared to less than a dozen during the week of July 25, 2020.
RSV is more transmissible than many other viruses. Its symptoms most often are mild, including runny nose, coughing and sneezing. Other more severe issues include trouble breathing, extreme fatigue, vomiting and dehydration. RVS symptoms, as well as those from the cold and flu, can be confused with COVID-19, causing more people to seek care and placing additional strain on the health care system and already overworked staffers.
Basically, we don’t know what will happen, says Ellen Foxman, MD, PhD, a Yale Medicine immunobiologist and laboratory medicine specialist and an expert in respiratory viruses, in a blog article. It’s like a big experiment. There are models for this coming year, but we just don’t know if they’re right or not yet.
Tips To Prevent The Flu
The Centers for Disease Control and Prevention recommends that everyone 6 months and older get a flu shot every year. It takes about two weeks for immunity to develop. The CDC also indicates you can get a flu and COVID-19 vaccination at the same time, including a booster dose. The COVID-19 vaccine does not work against influenza and vice versa.
The influenza vaccine is available at doctors offices and retail pharmacies and is covered by medical insurance. People with no health care coverage can get vaccinated at one of the Countys six public health centers or a local community clinic. To find the nearest location, visit the Countys Flu Vaccine Locations page or call 2-1-1 San Diego.
In addition to getting vaccinated, people should also do the following to avoid getting sick:
- Wash hands thoroughly and often
- Use hand sanitizers, if unable to wash hands
- Stay away from sick people
- Avoid touching your eyes, nose, and mouth
- Clean commonly touched surfaces and
- If you are sick, stay home and avoid contact with others.
During the 2020-2021 flu season, a total of 848 influenza cases were reported in San Diego, including two deaths. During the 2019-2020 flu season, more than 20,700 flu cases were reported and 108 San Diegans died from influenza.
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Flu Surveillance Data Updates
Were there any updates in the methods for flu surveillance for 2020-2021?
For the 2020-2021 flu season, there were some changes to FluView surveillance methodology.
In addition to state-level data, the influenza-like-illness activity map displayed ILI activity by Core-based Statistical Areas , a U.S. geographic area defined by the Office of Management and Budget that consists of one or more counties anchored by an urban center of at least 10,000 people plus adjacent counties that are socioeconomically tied to the urban center by commuting.
Also, during most flu seasons, state and territorial health departments report the level of geographic spread of flu activity in their jurisdictions each week through the State and Territorial Epidemiologists Report. However, because COVID-19 and influenza have similar symptoms and it is difficult to differentiate the two without laboratory testing, reporting for this system was suspended for the 2020-21 influenza season.
More information on flu surveillance methodology and these updates is available online.
Why was pneumonia, influenza, and COVID-19 mortality data added to FluView Interactive?
Flu Cases And Deaths From The 20202021 Season Were Drastically Lower Than Usualand That Could Spell Trouble For This Year’s Flu Season
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Flu season in the US, which runs from October through May, normally claims tens of thousands of lives every year. But there’s never an exact number of flu deaths for any yearthat’s because the flu is not a reportable disease in most states, and not everyone who develops the flu seeks care or gets tested, according to the US Centers for Disease Control and Prevention . Instead, the agency develops estimates based on rates of laboratory-confirmed, flu-associated hospitalizations.
Last year, however, as the COVID-19 pandemic dominated the US, influenza cases were at an all-time low: Data from the CDC, supplied toJAMA, shows that out of 1.3 million specimens collected by labs between October 3, 2020 and July 24, 2021, only 2,136 were positive for influenza. Of those 2,136 influenza cases, there were only 748 flu-related deaths.
That’s a huge difference from the rates of the 20192020 flu season. Per the CDC, there were an estimated 35 million flu-related illnessesthat number includes 16 million medical visit for the flu 380,000 flu-related hospitalizations and 20,000 deaths due to influenza.
Of course, those data are only from two specific yearsand they show two very different ways the flu impacted the US population. Here’s what you need to know about how many people die from the flu each year, on average, what infectious disease experts are expecting for the upcoming 20212022 flu season, and how to protect yourself.
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