NASHVILLE, Tenn. (WTVF) — Friends and families will be gathering for the holidays in the next few days, but an unwelcome guest may be crashing the party: the flu. According to the CDC, Tennessee is one of eight states (not including New York City) seeing the highest level of flu activity in the country.
It’s the worst outbreak in more than a decade hitting nearly every state. The virus began earlier than normal this year and packed a punch.
Young children and adults 65 and over have been particularly hard hit, especially those with underlying health conditions.
But a recent studyshowed 41% of Americans are unsure or don’t plan to get a flu shot this season.
With many gathering for the upcoming holidays, infectious disease expert Dr. William Schaffner said you may want to consider wearing a mask again for your safety and the safety of others.
“I encourage people to put their masks back on, particularly the people in high-risk groups- if you’re older, if you have an underlying illness, if you’re pregnant, if you’re immune compromised- absolutely, and everybody else can help too by putting their masks back on,” said Schaffner.
This all comes amid the continued spread of COVID and RSV - the combination of the three has been called a 'tripledemic'. Schaffner said all three respiratory viruses exhibit similar symptoms making it tricky to tell them apart. That’s why testing has been an important part in making sure patients receive proper and immediate treatment.
While all three viruses can affect people of all ages, children have been especially hard hit with RSV this season. “Right now we’re seeing both flu and RSV, but RSV started and not it’s kind of on a plateau, in some parts of the country it started to tick down," said Schaffner. "Flu- it’s still going up, so these respiratory viruses are going to be with us for a while.”
Some symptoms to look out for in children include a high fever, any difficulty breathing, or if your child is lethargic or not eating or drinking.
While there is no vaccine for RSV, experts say it’s not too late to get your flu or COVID vaccine. They also recommend to continue basic precautions like washing hands frequently and staying home if you feel sick.
