News from the FDA/CDC

High levels of flu activity reported in 15 states

Publish date: February 3, 2017
By
Richard Franki

 

Fifteen states experienced high levels of flu activity for the week ending Jan. 28 as the 2016-2017 season moved past last season’s peak, according to the Centers for Disease Control and Prevention.

The proportion of outpatient visits for influenza-like illness (ILI) was 3.9% for the week ending Jan. 28, 2017, the CDC reported. That level is higher than the national baseline level of 2.2% and higher than the peak of 3.6% for the 2015-2016 season.

Influenza-like illness activity level, week ending Jan. 28, 2017
For the week ending Jan. 28, there were seven states at level 10 on the CDC’s 1-10 scale of ILI activity: Kansas, Missouri, New Jersey, New York, Oklahoma, Pennsylvania, and South Carolina. The other states in the “high” range were Arkansas, Georgia, Louisiana, and Tennessee at level 9 and Alabama, Indiana, Kentucky, and Wyoming at level 8, the CDC said.

The week also brought reports of seven flu-related pediatric deaths, although five actually occurred during previous weeks. There have now been 15 flu-related pediatric deaths during the 2016-2017 season, the CDC reported.

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