Flu season just dey start, but doctors dey already on high alert. Early signs dey show say flu dey pick up for U.S. Some parts of di kontri dey see flu spread earlier than usual. Dis dey cause wahala say cases fit soon explode as plenty Americans dey travel and gather for Thanksgiving and oda holidays.
Di warning signs dey come as one type of virus, wey dem dey call H3N2 subclade K, don cause big outbreaks for Canada and U.K. Doctor Cameron Wolfe, wey be infectious disease specialist for Duke University School of Medicine, yarn say he don see sharp increase for flu cases over di past few weeks.
“Normally, I for dey see one or two cases every week for dis time,” Wolfe yarn. “Right now, we don get two, three, four per day wey dey come in.”
Alicia Budd, wey be head of di Centers for Disease Control and Prevention’s domestic influenza surveillance team, say: “We dey expect for sure say we go see influenza activity dey increase over di next several weeks.”
Plenty of di flu wey dey spread so far dis season for U.S. na di H3N2 strain, according to CDC. H3N2 flus dey tend to cause more hospitalizations and deaths for older adults.
Early increase for cases, Wolfe yarn, fit create special risks for dis age group. “If you dey see early flu season, you dey run di risk say some nursing homes no fit don finish dia vaccine deployments. Maybe hospital no don fully vaccinate dia staff,” Wolfe yarn. “Di community in general fit no dey as protected as e for dey if virus show face for January, for example.”
Even though flu activity dem consider low overall, di CDC latest flu report dey show say cases dey rise. Di agency dey estimate say at least 650,000 people don get flu so far dis season. Around 7,400 people don dey hospitalized and 300 don die, according to dem.
Wetin You Fit Do?
- Get your flu shot! E dey important for protect yourself and oda people.
- Wash your hands regularly with soap and water.
- Avoid touching your face.
- If you dey sick, stay house so you no go spread di virus.