ROCHESTER, N.Y. — It’s been an unusually early and severe flu season in the Rochester region, but case numbers seem to be heading in the right direction, according to the latest report from Roc Health Data.
The seven-county region around Rochester saw 1,028 confirmed cases of Influenza A, the dominant flu strain this season, for the week ending on Jan. 10. That’s the third week in a row that flu cases have decreased.
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The region saw the highest number of cases during the week of Dec. 20, with 3,233 confirmed Influenza A cases, before dropping. Jennifer Gutowski, director of infection prevention at Rochester Regional Health, said that it’s too early to determine if we’ve reached the peak, but she has seen fewer flu-related hospitalizations.
“There’s always a chance that there could be a second peak and we’ve seen that in the past, but it does like we’re continuing the downward trend in our Finger Lakes hospitals,” she said.
As far as the hospitalization rate, it has decreased for two weeks in a row in the region. So far, there have been 24 flu-related deaths in the region, all being in Monroe County. You can explore the latest data on respiratory illnesses this season here.
Gutowski said it’s hard to definitely say why the flu season is so severe this year, but one reason may be that the vaccine wasn’t a strong match to this year’s strain. In previous years, the vaccine has been a stronger match. However, Gutowski said getting the vaccine is still critical to protect against the flu and prevent the most serious side effects.
“There’s still great effectiveness for the vaccine and it cas still can help to avoid any significant morbidity related to the illness that you would have if you didn’t have the vaccine,” she said.
You can get the flu vaccine at your local pharmacy or doctor’s office.
Flu cases drop for three weeks in a row in region, RGH expert shares her take on the trend WHEC.com.
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