This winter was a complete nightmare for the Americans, due to the furious covid-19 pandemic. But new data from the Centers for Disease Control and Prevention keep going to show a bright spot: the flu has been suppressed at some of the lowest levels recorded. Interventions designed to slow the spread of covid-19, such as avoiding gatherings and wearing a mask, are likely to have helped stop the less contagious flu, and more people than usual have received the flu vaccine.
All 50 states are facing minimal activity right now, in what could normally be the end of the queue for the flu season, and the general flu season has been peaceful from start to finish. According to the CDC, the country’s cumulative hospitalization rate due to influenza is lower than it was during a flu season dating back to 2005, when the country began routine collection of this type of data. And perhaps most importantly, only one pediatric flu death has been reported this winter. Contrast this with the brutal, registration The flu season 2017-2018, when it passed 61,000 Americans, including 186 children, have died from the viral disease.
The numbers, though great news, are a bit unexpected. Last fall, many scientists really were anxious about the possibility of a “twindemia” of influenza and covid-19. Covid-19 has certainly maintained the end of the fair, with more deaths and hospitalizations this winter than any other point in the pandemic. However, they did exist evidence in other countries that experienced the flu earlier this year would be mild, for reasons very easy to understand.
Although both influenza and covid-19 are caused by viruses that spread through the respiratory system through aerosols and infectious drops, for example, coronavirus is more contagious than the garden flu virus. So, interventions that decrease a person’s chances of spreading covid-19, such as frequent hand washing, wearing a mask, or simply keeping away, are probably even more effective for the flu. This could be especially important when it comes to schools, as children are often influenza factors in normal times. And vaccination probably plays a role. Early data have suggested that vaccine absorption is higher than in recent years and there have been higher rates creditor for the success of other countries in keeping flu levels low.
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Influenza is not the only disease that has been suppressed due to pandemic measures. Last summer, there was never an expected increase in children developing polio-like paralysis, as infection rates of the common cold virus which can cause the decrease at the same time. Other common diseases such as norovirus, have also taken a bath in the last year.
Of course, trying to stay safe during the pandemic did not come without its social and mental costs. And the calm of these seasonal diseases could Bad that we will see peaks of these diseases once people return to their normal routine. But there is a lesson for future flu seasons: We may never be able to eradicate the flu, but more hand washing, vaccination, and staying home when you’re sick – or wearing a mask when you’re sick and have to go out – should definitely , to make less of a seasonal threat.