ALLENTOWN, Pa. (WFMZ) — Flu cases are on the rise across the country. This week, the CDC issued an alert that the number of those getting sick is the highest it has seen all season.
A local pediatrician tells us Lehigh County has had 800 flu cases so far and Northampton County, about 700.
Many of those patients were diagnosed over the last couple of weeks.
Lehigh Valley Health Network pediatrician Dr. George Nassar has been busy treating sick patients in the ER the last couple of weeks.
“We’ve been getting slammed with a lot of flu and RSV. Everyone’s getting together with their families over the holidays so there’s an increased transmissibility there and then we’re also seeing a very strong decline in flu vaccination which I’m sure is playing a role in the number of cases that we’re seeing,” Nassar explained.
Nassar encourages families to isolate if someone is sick and stay home.
“If your child has any signs of trouble breathing, if you see their ribs when they’re breathing, they’re breathing really fast, if their face, lips or skin turns blue or if they have signs of dehydration and they’re not drinking or they are persistently vomiting, can’t keep anything down. If you have a baby and the baby is not making wet diapers, they should be making at least two wet diapers in twelve hours, those are signs of dehydration that people should look out for,” Nassar stated.
Dr. Heather Osher, a Medical Director at Patient First, tells us a lot more than just the flu has been going around.
“We’ve been seeing a whole lot of different illnesses. Lots of flu, flu is probably the biggest one that we’ve been seeing. After that some strep and a lot of GI bugs. The norovirus is a big one that’s been going around and then COVID is going around as well,” Osher said.
She’s also seen cases of people getting a viral infection like the flu or covid and then coming down with a bacterial infection one to two weeks later. She encourages people to get their flu shot as the first line of defense.
“The biggest thing is going to be to get a flu vaccine just because the flu vaccine prevents significant disease, hospitalizations, things like that,” Osher explained.
If you start to feel sick, you can take an over-the-counter flu or covid test and the sooner you can get treated, the sooner you’ll feel better. As for staying healthy, practice good habits.
“Eat a good balanced meal, exercise, get a lot of sleep and just the normal thing is to prevent actually getting it, wash your hands as much as you can, wear a mask, don’t touch your face. If you’re sick, obviously don’t go out, stay home, mask up, that kind of thing,” Osher concluded.
The CDC says more than 19,000 people nationwide were admitted to the hospital with the flu last week.
The surge is being driven by a new strain of the virus.