A recent increase in H1N1 flu activity and related hospitalizations in Georgia triggered an update from the Centers for Disease Control and Prevention about the disease that has now claimed about 12,000 lives in the U.S.
In a teleconference Monday, U.S. Surgeon General Regina Benjamin, M.D., said about 60 million people have been infected with the H1N1 virus, which has also caused about 265,000 U.S. hospitalizations. Benjamin also said there is a higher rate of disease among those who have chronic diseases—such as diabetes or cancer—and that it's important to remind minority groups about getting the vaccine, because these groups have higher rates of chronic conditions. Benjamin joined Anne Schuchat, M.D., director of the CDC's National Center for Immunization and Respiratory Diseases, who said the H1N1 virus continues to circulate, and nearly all of the flu activity this year has been from this particular strain.
“My key message is that we're continuing to see people with serious illness, especially in the Southeast,” Schuchat said, adding that three states—Alabama, Georgia and South Carolina—are reporting “regional activity,” which she defined as one step below “widespread activity.” Meanwhile, Puerto Rico and the states of Arkansas, Hawaii, Louisiana, Mississippi, New Mexico, North Carolina, Tennessee and Virginia—are reporting “local activity.”
But flu activity in Georgia is the most troublesome, given that the state has seen a persistent increase in lab-confirmed cases of the H1N1 virus each week since mid-February, according to Schuchat. In the last week alone, Georgia has had more than 40 hospitalizations related to the disease.
“We don't have any evidence that the H1N1 virus has changed,” Schuchat said, adding that most of the cases have been in adults with underlying conditions. Schuchat also emphasized the value of vaccination, saying that it is still beneficial for people to receive the vaccine if they have not done so already.
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