Local flu cases drop after spike in late December

Idaho has reported no cases of the coronavirus, and the general risk is fairly low right now, according to the Idaho Department of Health and Welfare.
 Public health officials are monitoring the national and international situations closely and working with Centers for Disease Control and Prevention and other states.
 They also are in regular communication with the local public health districts and healthcare providers around the state to make sure they know that to look for and are prepared to respond if someone is sick or has been exposed.
 While the coronavirus is not in Idaho, the other flu virus hit Weiser hard in late December and around the first of the year, with numerous cases of both A and B types confirmed by local medical providers.
 According to data provided by the infection control nurse at Weiser Memorial Hospital, there were 20 confirmed cases of flu type B during the last two weeks of December and the first week of January.
 Toward the end of January there was a small spike in flu type A with five confirmed cases at the hospital.
 The confirmed flu cases are only representative of those patients that received testing at WMH locations. Only people who are ill with flu symptoms are tested and it’s up to the medical provider’s discretion to order the tests. Not everyone who had the flu went to the hospital and was tested.
 The flu virus and type A or B is confirmed with a nasal swab test, said Hilary Kile, RN, who works at WMH.
 Initially, there was a significant spike of flu type B, mainly in school-aged children (ages 5-17).
 The number of cases appears to have dropped off since then, but the flu season is not considered over.
 The exact timing and duration of flu seasons can vary, but influenza activity often peaks between December and February, although activity can last as late as May, according to the Centers for Disease Control and Prevention.
 “We’re seeing lower numbers,” Kile said last week.
 The hospital laboratory reports confirmed flu cases to the Southwest District Health Department, which in turn sends that data to the state.
 It’s the state’s numbers that the CDC uses for tracking the flu across the country.
 Weiser physician Dr. Lore Wootton, with Two Rivers Medical Clinic, said there have been many cases of flu, both A and B. The clinic runs all its flu tests through the hospital. There also was an outbreak of flu at a local nursing home in December, she said.
 The CDC website that tracks flu activity weekly across the U.S. currently shows Idaho to be an anomaly with minimal flu activity. That is not what other states are seeing.
 There are many states with moderate to high activity of flu-like illness. The unusually low activity in Idaho may be due to someone new reporting the numbers or using different methodology.
 Mirroring what Weiser has experienced, the flu dropped across the country at the beginning of 2020.
 But unlike Weiser, in other parts of the country the CDC said cases have gone up again in the previous couple of weeks, and it is the flu type A that seems to be more common.
 Earlier in the flu season, the type B strain was more common. The flu type B has been diagnosed more among children and young adults up to 24 years old. The flu type A has been more common among adults 65 and older, the CDC said.
 Even with an apparent downturn in flu cases in Weiser, Kile said the hospital and medical providers remain vigilant, knowing the flu season generally peaks in February.
  “We continue to be on high alert and take precautions to mitigate spread by educating staff and patients on the importance of hand hygiene, “covering your cough” and utilizing masks in the patient care environment, wiping down surfaces (like phones, keyboards, patient care equipment, etc.) and encouraging people to stay home if they are ill and have a fever from school or work,” Kile said.
 As of Feb. 6, the Idaho Department of Health and Welfare has reported 15 deaths related to the flu this season.