Experts warn of the coming flu season as children’s hospitals are already feeling the crush

A surge in pediatric patients with respiratory illnesses is overwhelming hospitals across the United States, as experts warn of a potentially severe flu season in the coming months.

Pediatric bed capacity in hospitals the highest It’s been two years. Across the country, hospitals are being flooded with pediatric patients with respiratory illnesses, accounting for up to 71% of the estimated 40,000 available hospital beds, the US Department of Health and Human Services reports.

“[Various respiratory] Viruses have topped SARS-CoV-2, and now the surge of influenza, which we feared would be rampant this year, has arrived,” said Dr. Charlotte Hobbs, professor of pediatric infectious diseases and microbiology at the University of Mississippi Medical Center (UMMC). , Children’s of Mississippi, told ABC News.

Dr. Michael Koster, director of pediatric infectious diseases at Hasbro Children’s Hospital in Providence, Rhode Island, said the number of young patients hospitalized with respiratory syncytial virus (RSV), a common respiratory infection, between mid-September and mid-October. Viruses that usually cause cold-like symptoms are two-fold.

“We’re seeing patients from over 100 miles away, because their local children’s hospital is full or closed,” Koster told ABC News, referring to the recent closure of several pediatric hospitals in New England.

Lynette Brammer, an epidemiologist with the CDC’s influenza division, said the National Public Health Agency is monitoring the flow of respiratory viruses.

The CDC is reporting an early increase in seasonal influenza activity across most of the United States, with the Southeast and Southcentral regions of the country reporting the highest levels of activity.

Experts say the rise may be fueled, in part, by the easing of Covid restrictions, putting many at risk of illness as a potentially severe flu season approaches.

“We’ve had a reasonably quiet year as a result of all the efforts to control Covid. This means that some of these viruses are resurging that we have annually, but in a more significant way,” said John Brownstein, Ph.D. D., an ABC News medical contributor and chief innovation officer at Boston Children’s Hospital.

The transition to the winter months also usually increases the illness.

“As the weather gets drier, people come back inside, spending more time inside. And you layer that with a lot of population movement, especially with the holidays coming up, it becomes a real, perfect storm for the flu to spread,” Brownstein said. said .

Last week, 1,674 patients were hospitalized with flu complications, According to the CDC. That was up from 1,332 the previous week, the agency said.

Brownstein notes that we see a lot of variability from year to year, but this current flu season has grown very quickly and hasn’t peaked yet.

“Typically, we see flu starting in November or December. Typically, the peak occurs in February, but we went into October already seeing an increase in influenza activity,” Brammer said.

Visits to health care providers are currently concentrated among younger people, with the highest percentage of visits for flu-like illnesses at more than 10% for those under 5, CDC data show. The next highest percentage is 5 to 24 year olds, at 5% of visits.

“Many years you have influenza activity, starting in children and then spreading to other age groups,” Brammer said.

Puerto Rico, Louisiana and Alabama joined New York, Washington, D.C., Texas, Georgia, Tennessee and South Carolina last week in reports of high levels of flu-like illness, according to the CDC. At this time last year, Texas, Georgia and D.C. were the only states reporting similar levels.

“The CDC is following our surveillance data so that we can inform people about influenza activity, spread the word [the] influenza vaccine, and to let people know that this is the time of year to get your flu vaccine,” Brammer said.

Brammer noted the importance of antivirals in combating the flu. However, “those drugs really need to be taken in the first two days of illness. So, you need to see your doctor quickly,” she adds.

The CDC recommends that everyone 6 months of age and older get a flu vaccine to help prevent infection and serious illness.

“It’s really simple. We have a safe and effective vaccine. If you haven’t gotten that vaccine yet, now is the time to do it. You really want to get it before Halloween,” Brownstein said.

“Of course, it’s never too late. But the sooner the better,” he added.