Overview
- Public health data and clinician reports show the H3N2 subclade K widely circulating across the United States after surging in the United Kingdom and spreading through Europe and Australia.
- CDC seasonal estimates through mid-December list about 4.6 million illnesses, 49,000 hospitalizations, and 1,900 deaths so far this season.
- Very high activity is reported in New York, New Jersey, Rhode Island, Louisiana, and Colorado, with New York logging record weekly cases and Manhattan seeing a 104% jump earlier this month.
- Doctors describe more intense symptom profiles including high fever, severe body aches, extreme fatigue, persistent cough, headaches, and in some patients shortness of breath, chest pain, and gastrointestinal distress.
- Health officials urge early antiviral treatment for eligible patients—Tamiflu, Xofluza, Relenza, or Rapivab—and warn that low vaccine uptake could worsen the season even as there is still time to get a shot.