CHARLOTTE, N.C. — Flu is picking up steam while RSV lung infections that can hit kids and older people hard may be peaking, U.S. health officials said Friday.
COVID-19, though, continues to cause the most hospitalizations and deaths among respiratory illnesses — about 15,000 hospitalizations and about 1,000 deaths every week, said Dr. Mandy Cohen, head of the Centers for Disease Control and Prevention.
The agency is also looking into reports of pneumonia outbreaks in children in two states, but Cohen said “there is no evidence" that they are due to anything unusual.
Doctors are urging that vaccinations are the best defense when it comes to mothers to be fully protected against influenza and other illnesses.
"It's important that moms, the number one priority is always taking care of their children," Atrium Health physician Dr. Jonathan Siebert said. "And that's what the RSV vaccine does. You know, it's all about preventing RSV, and the newborns up to six months of age. And so getting a vaccine, well, you're pregnant can help prevent RSV and your newborn."
As for the flu season, seven states were reporting high levels of flu-like illnesses in early November. In a new CDC report on Friday, the agency said the tally was up to 11 states — mostly in the South and Southwest.
In the last month, RSV infections rose sharply in some parts of the country, nearly filling hospital emergency departments in Georgia, Texas and some other states. But "we think we’re near the peak of RSV season or will be in the next week or so," Cohen said.
RSV, or respiratory syncytial virus is a common cause of mild cold-like symptoms but it can be dangerous for infants and older people.
“RSV is one of those infections that unfortunately, like flu, disproportionately has severe effects for younger children," Novant Health OB-GYN Dr. Peter Salib said. "So especially the newborn to six-month age range, those babies are going to be at the highest risk of having complicated infections and hospitalization.”
Cohen was asked about pneumonia cases in children reported in Massachusetts and in Warren County, Ohio, near Cincinnati. There are a number of possible causes of lung infection, and it can be a complication of COVID-19, flu, or RSV.
In Ohio, health officials have reported 145 cases since August and most of the children recovered at home. The illnesses were caused by a variety of common viruses and bacteria, officials said.
Health experts are hoping to educate more people who are becoming more "vaccine skeptical".
Dr. Siebert aims to ease the minds of his patients. “Meet patients where they are and comfort them through that discomfort that they have, you know, so I think you got to be open to hearing their concerns and making sure you take the time, you know, maybe not just at one visit, but over time, you know, stressing the importance of the vaccines in what you're trying to help them with," Siebert said.
Massachusetts health officials said there’s been a modest increase in pneumonia in kids but that it is appropriate for the season.
China recently had a surge in respiratory illnesses which health officials there attributed to the flu and other customary causes.
___
Contact Myles Harris at mharris5@wcnc.com and follow him on Facebook, X and Instagram.
The Associated Press Health and Science Department receives support from the Howard Hughes Medical Institute’s Science and Educational Media Group. The AP is solely responsible for all content.