Influenza Activity - United States, September 30-December 1, 2018.

Influenza Activity - United States, September 30-December 1, 2018. MMWR Morb Mortal Wkly Rep. 2018 Dec 14;67(49):1369-1371 Authors: Budd AP, Abd Elal AI, Alabi N, Barnes J, Blanton L, Brammer L, Burns E, Cummings CN, Dugan VG, Garg S, Garten R, Grohskopf LA, Gubareva L, Kniss K, Kramer N, O'Halloran A, Sessions W, Taylor C, Wentworth DE, Xu X, Fry AM, Katz J, Jernigan D Abstract Influenza activity in the United States was low during October 2018, and, although it increased slowly during November, activity remains low across most of the country.* During the week ending December 1, 2018, the percentage of outpatient visits for influenza-like illness† (ILI) was equal to the national baseline§ (Figure) and was at or slightly above the region-specific baseline in four of the 10 U.S. Department of Health and Human Services regions¶ (Regions 4 and 7-9). The majority of jurisdictions experienced minimal or low ILI activity since September 30; however, two experienced moderate ILI activity, and two experienced high ILI activity** during the week ending December 1. The percentage of deaths attributed to pneumonia and influenza remains below the epidemic threshold,†† and the rate of influenza-associated hospitalizations remains low. Five laboratory-confirmed, influenza-associated pediatric deaths occurring since September 30 have been reported to CDC. During the week ending December 1, the majority of jurisdictions (40 states, the Distr...
Source: MMWR Morb Mortal Wkl... - Category: Epidemiology Authors: Tags: MMWR Morb Mortal Wkly Rep Source Type: research