Friday, January 12, 2018

CDC Media Advisory: Update On This Year's Flu Season Today

Last Week's FluView ILI Map













#13,057

We won't see the latest CDC FluView report for another 6 hours or so - but based on reports from across the nation (see  FluTrackers' state by state coverage Seasonal Flu 2009 - 2018, including H1N1 pandemic 2009) - this flu season has shown no signs of slowing any time soon.
North America's primary viral nemesis this year has been H3N2 - which hits the elderly particularly hard - while some other parts of the world are contending with H1N1 or Influenza B. 
A bit surprisingly, while Asia, Western Europe, and North America are all reporting heavy flu activity, Russia is reporting one of their mildest flu seasons in years.  Flu is, as they say, unpredictable.

The FluView report we get every Friday is a snapshot of flu reports as of a week earlier (and some metrics - like P&I Mortality - are even older), meaning that the state of flu today across the nation can be better or worse than the latest reports suggests.
Since our flu season could run another 6 weeks or longer, it is too soon to say whether this year will be moderately severe, severe, or epic.  As I wrote a week ago in Remembering 1951: The Year Seasonal Flu Went Rogue, even a mild flu season can turn on a dime.
Later today the CDC will hold a live media update (details below) on this year's flu season. Since they have access to the raw data coming in on daily basis, they may have a better idea of how things are trending.

In any event, it should be a very interesting update.

CDC Update on Widespread Flu Activity


Media Advisory

For Immediate Release: Thursday, January 11, 2018
Contact: Media Relations
(404) 639-3286

What

CDC will provide an update on current U.S. flu activity.

Who

CDC Director Brenda Fitzgerald, M.D.
Dan Jernigan, M.D., M.P.H., Captain, U.S. Public Health Service, Director, Influenza Division, National Center for Immunization and Respiratory Diseases

When

Friday, January 12, at 11:00 a.m. ET

Dial-In

Media: 888-795-0855
Non-Media: 800-369-1605
International: 1-630-395-0331
PASSCODE: CDC Media

Important Instructions
If you would like to ask a question during the call, press *1 on your touchtone phone. Press *2 to withdraw your question. You may queue up at any time. You will hear a tone to indicate your question is pending.

TRANSCRIPT
A transcript of this media availability will be available following the briefing at CDC’s web site: www.cdc.gov/media.