COLUMBIA, S.C. — According to South Carolina's latest flu watch report, three Midlands counties show numbers for flu-like illnesses that are higher than the rest of the state.
"What you might assume is allergies could very well be something else," Renee Shook and Dan Naso said.
Shook and Naso said they recently faced the beginning of flu season. Naso said it started with what they thought were flu-like symptoms.
"Fever, scratchy throat whatever. Went to the doctor and tested positive for COVID," Naso said.
Dr. Jonathan Knoche with the Department of Health and Environmental Control (DHEC) said the beginning of the flu season is the time to get tested, especially when you have flu-like symptoms.
"A fever and then either having a cough or sore throat, it could be from flu, it could be something else," Knoche said. "So, until you get a test, you don't know definitely. Is it the flu? Is it a cold? Is it strep throat?" Knoche said.
He said this flu season has already claimed lives.
"So far this year, we've seen 40 - a little over 40 - hospitalizations, and then the flu season just started a couple of weeks ago; about half of those are in people over the age of 65, and we've had people passing away from flu this year," he said.
DHEC's recent report said there were elevated levels in Lexington, Newberry, and Orangeburg counties, but the rest of the state is below national numbers. The department said more than 3% of people will go to the emergency room for flu symptoms. Dr. Knoche added this is also the perfect flu vaccination time.
"We usually recommend that people get their flu shot kind of in the September, October time frame just so that they're prepared for whenever the peak - or multiple peaks - might come because each flu season is a little bit different."
The department releases these reports once a week.