Flu worsens amid COVID, RSV: What to know about symptoms, vaccine - USA TODAY

Dec 06, 2022

Though the “tripledemic” – COVID-19, RSV and influenza – remains a problem in many places, experts say the flu is beginning to hit the country hard.

William Schaffner, an infectious disease specialist at Vanderbilt University Medical Center in Nashville, Tennessee, said he has seen the first signs that RSV infections may be stabilizing after an early jump, while COVID-19 is “smoldering.”.

Rochelle Walensky said in a briefing Tuesday. .

But health officials are seeing an increase in cases and hospitalizations since Thanksgiving, Walensky said.

Flu strains: There are four types of influenza viruses – A, B, C and D – but the strains that typically cause seasonal flu illness are influenza A and B. The CDC says influenza C primarily causes mild disease and influenza D is normally seen in cattle, not people. .

This year’s flu vaccine is a good match for the three strains Schaffner said he's seeing most often in Nashville.

“Here, as everywhere, the acceptance of the influenza vaccine has been disappointing,” he said

Patients can be tested simultaneously for COVID-19 and influenza with a single swab