A ‘tripledemic’ of Covid, flu and RSV this winter could be on the horizon, health officials have warned.
While the spread of respiratory viruses is low at this time, the Centers for Disease Control and Prevention (CDC) has begun to see an increase in positive Covid tests and Covid-related emergency department visits. Covid hospitalizations are also increasing.
Flu activity, while currently low, “will likely increase during the fall and winter,” the CDC said in an update released yesterday. The same goes for RSV, he said.
And for the first time, people can get vaccinated against all three viruses, which pPublic health officials are urging people to avoid another tripledemic like last year, when hospitals were flooded.
Doctors hope enough people will be vaccinated to help avoid another “tripledemic” like last year, when hospitals were overwhelmed by an early flu season, an onslaught of RSV, or respiratory syncytial virus, and another winter coronavirus surge.
RSV infections cause about two million doctor visits, 80,000 hospitalizations and up to 300 deaths in children under five years of age each year, according to the CDC.
Covid hospitalizations have increased since late summer, although, thanks to some long-lasting immunity from vaccines and previous infections, not as much as this time last year.
Flu activity, while currently low, “will likely increase during the fall and winter,” the CDC said in an update released yesterday.
Most Americans just need to think about whether they should get the updated Covid vaccine and the flu vaccine, since they are available to almost everyone.
About 76.5 million adults aged 60 and older are also eligible to receive a new RSV vaccine made by Pfizer or GSK.
Last year, many pediatric and adult hospitals were completely overwhelmed by the high volume of tripledemic infections.
The increase not only occurred at a faster rate, but was also ahead of the typical seasonal peak.
It was the worst flu season the United States has experienced since the 2009 swine flu pandemic. At one point in December 2022, hospitals were more full than ever during the pandemic due to co-infections.
A child in Ohio was hospitalized in October 2022 after contracting three respiratory viruses at once.
Two-year-old Wilder Jackson of Middletown, just 30 miles north of Cincinnati, was simultaneously battling rhinovirus, enterovirus and adenovirus.
The three common cold viruses became increasingly serious for children post-lockdown, after social restrictions left many with weakened immune systems.
Wilder Jackson, 2, of Middletown, Ohio, was hospitalized after being simultaneously infected with rhinovirus, enterovirus and adenovirus.
Experts pointed to lockdowns, mask mandates and other pandemic orders over the past two years as reasons why this year’s flu season has been more brutal than previous ones.
The flu does not pose a danger to most Americans, but it can often affect the elderly, young children, and immunocompromised people.
RSV does not pose much danger to adults, but it can cause serious illness or even death in young children.
RSV infections cause about two million doctor visits, 80,000 hospitalizations and up to 300 deaths in children under five years of age each year, according to the CDC.
Authorities report that between 300 and 500 children will die each year from the virus.
About a third of the population will get RSV in any season, but for most adults it will be nothing more serious than cold-like symptoms.
The CDC on Tuesday approved updated vaccines to address new variants, such as Eris and BA.2.86, that are behind the rise in Covid cases and hospitalizations in the United States.
Even Americans who have never received the Covid vaccine are eligible to receive the new booster.
But appetite for more Covid vaccines is waning. Nearly six in 10 Americans over age 65 did not receive last year’s bivalent booster shot, and experts believe even fewer will show up once the newly formulated Covid vaccines are rolled out.
Covid hospitalizations have increased since late summer, although, thanks to some long-lasting immunity from vaccines and previous infections, not as much as this time last year.
CDC data showed that 18,871 patients were admitted to hospitals nationwide in the last week of August, up nine percent from the previous seven days.
Despite the increase, rates remain at historic lows. By comparison, there were 150,000 Covid admissions per week at the height of the pandemic in January 2021, and hospitalizations reached 44,000 one week earlier this year.
But protection wanes over time, and the coronavirus continually produces new variants that can bypass previous immunity.
Additionally, Covid testing has been largely phased out, while flu and RSV are not regularly tested.
