Flu activity reaches ‘very high’ level in Massachusetts
Illnesses caused by the flu are on the rise in Massachusetts, according to the Department of Public Health’s latest weekly report. . That’s nearly double the 2,846 cases confirmed during the week of the previous report. The percentage of all hospital admissions related to flu is also rising. DPH’s latest report indicates that 2.87% of hospitalizations in the state are related to the virus, up from 1.54% in the previous report. Meanwhile, state health officials say only 37.88% of Massachusetts residents have received a flu vaccine. That’s slightly lower than the state’s current vaccination rate during recent flu seasons. “The data still shows that the vaccines work quite well in terms of reducing whether or not you get the flu, and reducing the severity of the flu,” said Dr. Ali Raja, deputy chair of the department of emergency medicine at MGH A bit of good news this week is that Raja said healthcare professionals are seeing a “small dip” in RSV, a virus that has caused a recent surge in hospitalizations of children. “The number of cases is still high, but the rise appears to be slowing,” he said. Doctors say getting available vaccines for COVID-19 and flu, along with good health hygiene, is your best protection. “I can’t stress this enough: If you’re sick, please stay home so you don’t infect others,” said Dr. Simone Wildes, an infectious disease specialist at South Shore Health.
Illnesses caused by the flu are on the rise in Massachusetts, according to the Department of Public Health’s latest weekly report.
The report, published Friday, covering the week of Nov. 27 through Dec. 3, included 5,462 cases confirmed by lab tests. That’s nearly double the 2,846 cases confirmed during the week of the previous report.
The percentage of all hospital admissions related to flu is also rising. DPH’s latest report indicates that 2.87% of hospitalizations in the state are related to the virus, up from 1.54% in the previous report.
Meanwhile, state health officials say only 37.88% of Massachusetts residents have received a flu vaccine. That’s slightly lower than the state’s current vaccination rate during recent flu seasons.
“The data still shows that the vaccines work quite well in terms of reducing whether or not you get the flu, and reducing the severity of the flu,” said Dr. Ali Raja, Deputy Chairman of the Department of Emergency Medicine at MGH.
A bit of good news this week is that Raja said healthcare professionals are seeing a “small dip” in RSV, a virus that has caused a recent surge in hospitalizations of children.
“The number of cases is still high, but the increase seems to be slowing down,” he said.
Doctors say getting available vaccines for COVID-19 and flu, along with good health hygiene, is your best protection.
“I can’t stress this enough: If you’re sick, please stay home so you don’t infect others,” said Dr. Simone Wildes, an infectious disease specialist at South Shore Health.
