BATON ROUGE — The latest flu numbers from the Centers for Disease Control and Prevention (CDC) show Louisiana is among three states to report “very high” flu activity.
The new data is from the week ending in Dec. 13. The CDC’s FluView shows Louisiana reported more than 3,500 flu cases. Colorado and New York are the only other states to report “very high” flu activity.
Nationwide, flu cases were up nearly 15%, and the most frequently reported cases were influenza A.
BATON ROUGE — Flu season is in full effect, and if you’re sick right now, you’re not alone. According to the Centers for Disease Control and Prevention (CDC), Louisiana had the highest number of flu cases in the nation this week.
The CDC’s FluView map shows Louisiana is the only state in the U.S. to have high levels of flu activity, with more than 1,700 lab confirmed cases reported.
According to Patent Plus founder and CEO Dr. Rubin Patel, November typically marks the peak of cold and flu season, which runs all the way through late spring.
“It was about this time last year where we saw our cases skyrocket. Louisiana was one of the worst states last year,” Dr. Patel said. “We literally went from in the range on the map is like green to good, all the way to red to purple, being the worst.”
This year’s vaccine
The best way to protect yourself against the flu is to get a flu shot. Dr. Patel says this year’s vaccine is built to fight the most dangerous strains based on historic patterns. “This year’s flu vaccine will have several variants of the Type A virus and several variants of the Type B virus,” Dr. Patel explained.
“The H2N2 Type A has actually already started mutating to where the virus is not as strong in the vaccine as it could be. That doesn’t mean you shouldn’t take the vaccine. It’s just saying that we may have an uncommonly high flu season,” He said. Historically, about 40% of Louisianians get the flu vaccine each year.
Symptoms and prevention
Dr. Patel’s biggest piece of advice is to get tested for the flu as soon as you start having symptoms. “Whether it’s the fever, nausea, vomiting, body aches, chills, maybe a little cough, then you may want to come into Patient Plus and get tested,” he said. “We can also test you for other viruses that are out there, that includes RSV as well as COVID.”
It is possible to catch both COVID and the flu at the same time, which can mean more severe illness. When it comes to prevention, Dr. Patel recommends hand washing, staying at home if you’re sick, and avoiding close contact with anyone who’s been showing symptoms.
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