Lakewood Immediate Care: Flu season has been so bad, that the supplies of rapid flu tests have run out; But worst may be over

Flu activity is on the decrease for the first time in this fierce flu season, suggesting that the worst may be over, according to a federal health report released Friday.

But the intensity of illness caused by the respiratory virus, the worst since the swine flu pandemic of 2009-2010, continues to take its toll.

Michael Fish the on site manager for Lakewood Immediate Care, a walk in medical facility supervised by Dr. Alan Lempel, says, “This season has been so bad that the supplies of rapid flu tests have run out and have been on back order from our suppliers for several days. Flu shots are still available and are being administered, however it has slowed down significantly. People think if they haven’t gotten the flu by now they probably won’t get it, but that is flawed reasoning.”

CDC Officials and clinicians are still recommending that people get a flu shot because they expect several more weeks of flu activity, and the shot can reduce the chance of getting the flu and the severity of illness if you do get it.

“It has been a tough season so far this year, but this week we’re actually seeing visits to doctors’ offices, emergency departments, and outpatient clinics beginning to drop, so it looks like the peak of the season may actually be behind us,” Daniel Jernigan, head of CDC’s influenza division, said in a statement. Still, “we’re likely to see influenza continue to circulate until mid-April.

The past several months have been particularly harsh because the predominant flu strain, an influenza A virus known as H3N2, is the most deadly of the seasonal flu strains. It is associated with more complications, hospitalizations and deaths, especially among children, people older than 65 and those with certain chronic conditions. In the 2014-2015 season, the flu vaccine’s poor match resulted in an overall effectiveness of 19 percent. This season’s vaccine is almost twice as effective overall, at 36 percent, according to a midseason estimate by CDC. In children younger than 9, it actually offers much greater protection, reducing by more than half the risk of a child becoming so sick that he or she will need to see a doctor. Even with partial protection, the vaccine can reduce severity of illness, doctors say.

This season’s flu vaccine offers limited protection against the viruses sweeping the country, with its overall effectiveness of 36 percent according to a government report released Thursday.

In unrelentingly bad flu seasons such as the current one, which is dominated by the most dreaded flu strain, vaccines are less effective. That’s because that strain, the influenza A virus known as H3N2, can change more rapidly than any other flu viruses transmitted among humans, allowing it to evade the body’s immune system.

Still, experts said the current vaccine offers some protection against H3N2. Its 25 percent overall effectiveness rate means that one in four people who get the shot reduce their risk of becoming sick enough to need to see a doctor. Each year, health officials must choose the three or four influenza strains that vaccine makers should target for an upcoming season. The decision is made months in advance, when it is hard to know what strains will be circulating.

Flu vaccines generally provide greater protection against the other influenza A strain and influenza B strains now circulating. The CDC report found that the current vaccine is 67 percent effective against the other influenza A strain, H1N1, and 42 percent effective against influenza B viruses.

Still, even with lower effectiveness against H3N2, “I would still take 36 percent over nothing any day of the week,” Belongia said.

.

This content, and any other content on TLS, may not be republished or reproduced without prior permission from TLS. Copying or reproducing our content is both against the law and against Halacha. To inquire about using our content, including videos or photos, email us at [email protected].

Stay up to date with our news alerts by following us on Twitter, Instagram and Facebook.

**Click here to join over 20,000 receiving our Whatsapp Status updates!**

**Click here to join the official TLS WhatsApp Community!**

Got a news tip? Email us at [email protected], Text 415-857-2667, or WhatsApp 609-661-8668.

1 COMMENT

  1. all the people i know that got the flu shot got much sicker than those that didn’t
    it is such baloney it is unbelievable. there are no studies that show that someone who gets a flu shot gets a less severe case of flu!!! it either protects from the flu or does not protect. and this year it did NOT protect from the flu.
    i believe the flu was so bad this year because of the shot and the virus was mutating around the strains of the vaccine and therefore mutated in to a stronger strain.
    do yourself a favor and take vitamin d and vitamin c and stay far away from the flu shot.

Comments are closed.