Colorado is more than halfway through the annual flu season, and thanks to aggressive public health measures taken to combat COVID-19, along with an increase in vaccinations, the state has seen an impressive drop in serious flu cases and deaths.
The Colorado Department of Public Health and Environment has recorded a total of 23 hospitalizations so far this flu season, which began on September 27 and runs through May 22.
At that time, last year, 2,430 people had been hospitalized across the state with the flu. Colorado recorded 3,546 total flu hospitalizations in all 64 counties during the 2019-20 season.
Colorado has seen no pediatric flu deaths so far this season, as well as no outbreaks in long-term care facilities, according to data from the state health department. Three children under 18 died of influenza in Colorado during the 2019-20 flu season.
Only one pediatric flu death has been reported across the country this season, according to the Centers for Disease Control and Prevention. In contrast, the CDC reports that the 2019-20 season had a record 188 flu-related deaths in children in the United States
Colorado state health officials said they do not track adult deaths from the flu, but the CDC does. So far, in the 2020-21 season, the CDC reports that three people have died of influenza in Colorado. During the 2019-20 season, Colorado saw a total of 143 flu deaths, according to CDC data.
“I’ve never seen flu so low,” said Larissa Pisney, medical director of infection prevention and control at the University of Colorado UCHealth Hospital. “This is certainly unprecedented.”
The number of hospitalizations for influenza this season is the lowest that Dr. Eric France, medical director of the state’s health department, has seen in his 30 years of practice. He called it “extraordinary”.
Medical experts said the steep drop in traditional flu could be attributed to a number of factors, including coronavirus precautions and – notably – the fact that children did not attend school during much of the pandemic. This is usually the main form of spread of influenza.
All the things people are doing to prevent transmission of COVID-19 – including wearing face shields, traveling less, staying away and washing their hands often – have led to a decrease in the flu, Pisney said.
“People should be excited to see that flu can be prevented with our basic public health approach to wearing masks, vaccinating and avoiding meetings,” said France.
In addition, more people have had their flu shots this season. There has been a 13.5% increase in flu vaccinations this season. On February 15, 124,469 doses of the flu vaccine were administered in Colorado.
Even if someone hasn’t received a flu shot yet, Pisney said, there is still time because the virus has a chance of activity at the end of the season.
“The medical community was really concerned about the possibility of concurrent flu seasons in the midst of a COVID-19 pandemic,” said Amy Duckro, an infectious doctor at Kaiser Permanente Colorado. “Thank God that didn’t happen. We were all very relieved. At least, it hasn’t happened yet. “
Although the flu and COVID-19 are similar and transmitted by similar means, Pisney said the two should not be confused with the same virus. COVID-19 is more infectious, leads to more hospitalizations and is more deadly. During the past year in Colorado, more than 23,000 people have been hospitalized with COVID-19 and nearly 6,000 people have died of coronavirus.
Even with the release of the COVID-19 vaccines, there is no guarantee that the new coronavirus will disappear.
Duckro said medical professionals have not been able to predict the current low flu season and, like last year’s uncertainty, they will not be able to predict what the COVID-19 will do in the years to come.
“It’s really hard to predict, but I suspect COVID will be like the flu,” said Pisney. “We will probably see some similar degree of seasonality. I suspect that COVID will only be a part of our normal lives and will work for years to come. “
If COVID-19 becomes an annual virus, Duckro said that the lessons learned during this pandemic will allow people to manage it more effectively in the future.
France said there is still a lot we don’t know about COVID-19, but expects booster immunizations to be given every now and then, as with flu.
“We will learn more as we go,” he said.
As Colorado continues to navigate the pandemic, it is important to continue taking the necessary safety measures to keep the flu and COVID-19 cases low, Duckro said. Masking, keeping physical distance and washing hands are essential.
“It’s easy to be a little more arrogant about a disease that may be milder for you, but it just perpetuates the risk and perpetuates the cycle of exposure, which therefore puts the most vulnerable people in our communities at a very serious risk. , ”Duckro said.