Minnesota flu levels remain high, but hospitalizations decline

Flu exercise stays excessive in Minnesota, although the newest knowledge exhibits that confirmed circumstances and hospitalizations are happening within the state.

The massive image: The worst flu outbreak in additional than a decade has left practically each state with excessive or very excessive ranges of flu exercise, Axios’ Adriel Bettelheim stories.

Zoom in: About 500 folks in Minnesota had been hospitalized with influenza final week, per a Division of Well being replace launched Thursday. That is down from the earlier week’s excessive of 559.

• The variety of constructive flu exams submitted by a whole bunch of hospitals and clinics additionally dropped final week.

Of word: Constructive exams for RSV, a cold-like virus that may be particularly harmful for younger youngsters and older adults, ticked up barely, however remained decrease than final month.

Between the traces: Public well being specialists say that masking and different pandemic precautions largely saved influenza at bay over the previous two years, Bettelheim stories.

• The return to pre-pandemic life has left us “immunologically naïve” and extra inclined to infections, immunologists informed Nature.

Sure, however: Specialists warning they nonetheless do not know loads about seasonal viruses and proceed to grapple with questions like how a lot COVID-19 has weakened the general public’s immunity.

What to observe: MDH spokesperson Doug Schultz informed Axios by way of electronic mail that it’s too early to say with any certainty whether or not the season has peaked.

• “We regularly see dips from week to week in the course of the course of the season, so we need to search for a sustained decline over a number of weeks to actually know the place we’re headed,” Schultz wrote.

The underside line: It isn’t too late to get a flu shot. A jab now ought to offer you safety by the vacations.