Home Health How serious is the situation where YOU live? Map Reveals Virus Hotspots in US

How serious is the situation where YOU live? Map Reveals Virus Hotspots in US

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The latest data from the CDC suggests that flu, Covid and RSV are

According to official data, a “quadraemia” of winter diseases is emerging throughout the South, the Midwest and parts of the Northeast.

Four viral infections (flu, Covid, respiratory syncytial virus (RSV) and norovirus) have surged in the United States, infecting 15 million Americans and killing 30,000 so far this winter.

The surge in illnesses, which experts have called a “quademia,” has put pressure on the U.S. healthcare system, prompting some hospitals to reinstate mask mandates and limit visiting hours to prevent spread.

Now, the CDC reports that levels of respiratory illnesses like the flu, RSV and Covid remain “high” in 15 states through the first weeks of the new year, based on emergency room visits and positive tests.

These include groups in the South and Midwest, such as Texas, Arizona, Oklahoma, Nebraska, Minnesota, Wisconsin, Kentucky, Georgia and Florida.

Northeastern states such as Pennsylvania, Maryland, Delaware, New York, New Jersey, Connecticut and Massachusetts have also experienced “high” respiratory activity.

And New Hampshire is the only state reporting “very high” levels of respiratory illnesses for the week of Jan. 11, the latest data available.

The CDC also predicts that levels of influenza, which sickens 40 million Americans annually, are expected to increase throughout the South, as well as in Wisconsin, New Jersey and California.

Latest CDC data suggests flu, Covid and RSV are ‘high’ in 15 US states in the South, Midwest and Northeast (file image)

Experts have suggested that while an increase in these illnesses is common during winter, the increase could be partly due to declining Covid and flu vaccination rates.

Dr Joe Bresee, an infectious diseases expert who spent two decades at the CDC, previously told DailyMail.com: ‘We know these viruses are coming, we see them increasing every year.

“We are expecting increases in the circulation of these four over the next few months and that would cause what we call epidemics (outbreaks).”

Flu, Covid and RSV are primarily transmitted through airborne droplets when someone coughs or sneezes, and are a seasonal threat.

All viruses increase during the winter as colder temperatures force people to spend more time indoors, causing more people to breathe the same air or touch the same surfaces.

Flu, Covid and RSV can cause symptoms including fever, cough, shortness of breath, sore throat or fatigue.

The CDC measures viral activity by the percentage of emergency room visits for these conditions. The levels in each state are compared to the national average to determine whether they are “minimal,” “low,” “moderate,” “high” or “very high.”

The higher the designation, the faster the disease spreads in an area.

CDC wastewater data suggests that influenza infections are “very high” in 11 states. These are California, Washington, Oregon, Utah, New Mexico, Kansas, Nebraska, Louisiana, Georgia, Florida and North Carolina.

For Covid, states with “very high” activity include Arizona, Nebraska, Missouri, Iowa, Minnesota, Wisconsin, South Dakota, Oklahoma, Ohio, Pennsylvania, South Carolina, Vermont, New Hampshire, Maine, Massachusetts, Connecticut and Rhode Island.

And for RSV, New Mexico, Wyoming, Louisiana, North Carolina, Massachusetts and Virginia report “very high” levels of viral activity.

The latest data also shows that the violent norovirus, which infects 21 million Americans each year, has caused 91 outbreaks in the first week of December, according to the latest data available.

This is a 40 percent increase above the record for the same week from 2010 to 2024.

Across the United States, Wisconsin reported the most norovirus outbreaks (or where two or more cases were reported in hospitals or schools), with 22 total.

Ohio (11), Virginia (6), California (5), Oregon (4) and Vermont (4) also recorded a higher number of outbreaks compared to other states.

The latest CDC surveillance shows that 19 percent of flu tests came back positive during the week of Jan. 11, the latest data available.

This adds up to just under 22,000 infections nationwide.

That’s a slight increase from 18 percent the week before, though it’s the smallest jump in positive tests the U.S. has seen since infections began rising in mid-October.

About 9,000 RSV infections were reported during the week of January 11, a test positivity rate of nine percent.

This is an 18 percent decrease from the previous week, when 11 percent of tests were positive, suggesting infections may have peaked during the winter season.

The latest data shows that 6.6 per cent of Covid tests were positive during the week of January 11, a slight decrease from seven per cent the previous week.

Covid hospitalizations decreased from 3.8 per 100,000 people in the week of January 4 to 2.5 per 100,000 in the week of January 11.

Hospital visits for Covid, influenza and RSV have also decreased.

During the week of January 11, Covid accounted for one in 100 emergency room visits, while RSV accounted for one in 150, slight decreases from the previous week.

Influenza accounted for 4.2 percent of emergency room visits, a 15 percent decrease from five percent the previous week.

The latest CDC data also measured the likelihood that flu epidemics will worsen across the United States.

Data suggests that influenza will “grow” in Texas, California, Wisconsin, Louisiana, Mississippi, Georgia, South Carolina, California and New Jersey.

Additionally, experts suggested that epidemics “are probably growing” in Washington, Idaho, New Mexico, Oklahoma, Iowa, Illinois, Tennessee, New York and Connecticut.

However, influenza epidemics are “probably declining” in Nevada, Kansas, Nebraska and Delaware and are “declining” in Alaska, Kentucky and West Virginia.

There are no states with “growing” or “probably growing” Covid epidemics, and epidemics are considered “declining” or “probably declining” in all states except Texas, Missouri, Arkansas and Wyoming, of which the last three have no data. .

CDC did not estimate RSV epidemic trends.

Treatment for RSV, Covid and flu includes rest, fluids and antiviral medications and oxygen therapy in severe cases.

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