Health officials across the Chicago suburbs are warning of spiking flu cases, with ICU and hospital admissions associated with the illness “dramatically increasing” and Illinois reporting its first child death from flu this season.
“Flu activity is currently high in Kane County, and respiratory illnesses are spreading widely in the community,” an update Monday from the Kane County Health Department said. In a similar update, suburban Cook County health officials said flu activity had risen to “very high.”
“The percentage of emergency room visits associated with the flu continues to increase and has surpassed peak values seen last year,” a press release from the Cook County Department of Public Health said. “Hospital admissions associated with flu and COVID-19 are dramatically increasing. ICU admissions for flu nearly doubled.”
“Very high” ranks as the most severe of five categories of respiratory illness activity, according to the Centers for Disease Control and Prevention’s scale. Across the state, flu cases were continuing to climb, mimicking a similar pattern seen across the country.
“Illinois is facing a significant winter surge in seasonal respiratory illnesses with flu activity at very high levels,” Illinois Department of Health Director Dr. Sameer Vohra said in a release Monday. Vohra added that the flu vaccine remains the “most effective tool to prevent from severe illnesses from flu,” along with COVID and RSV.
The spike in flu is having a serious impact on people under the age of 18, Illinois hospital data show. Children between the ages of 5 and 17 are most impacted by hospital admissions related to acute respiratory illnesses and the flu, while people 65 and older are most impacted by COVID-19.
“If you develop symptoms, it is important to get evaluated and treated early in your illness, especially if you are 65 years or older, are a young child under the age of 2 years, are pregnant, have chronic conditions, or care for someone at risk,” Vohra went on to say.
Are flu shots still available?
In suburban Cook County, flu vaccines are available at a number of locations through March. It also may be available through primary care offices, and at Walgreens and CVS clinics.
Loafman and Mora agreed, saying while this season’s flu vaccine was not formulated specifically for the new variant, it will still help prevent against more severe illness.
“There has been a lot of talk about the fact that the new variant is not well-covered by it. … That is true, but you still get protection. And so what we typically see, the folks that are sick, hospitalized, are those who were not vaccinated. … The vaccine isn’t perfect. It doesn’t protect all aspects of this from folks. It doesn’t keep you necessarily from getting the flu as often as we would like, but it certainly mitigates the severity of illness,” Loafman said. “So people with [the] flu shot tend to do better. Their symptoms are less likely to get worse. They’re more likely to bounce back and recover and stay well and far less likely to be hospitalized or, God forbid, to die from the flu if you’ve had the vaccine. And it’s never too late to get it until the flu season’s over – so late March, April, sometime like that.”
Loafman said even those who have already had the flu should consider getting the vaccine if they haven’t already as the risk for reinfection also exists.
“There are three strains going around and probably a few more. So you can still be protected from the future,” he said.
NBC Chicago’s James Neveau, Alex Dvorak and Francie Swidler contributed to this article.
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