"I think this particular strain makes people feel pretty horrible,"
"And the reason that subclade K is important is it may not be covered by the current flu vaccine."
"It may start rising in California now, because people were sick when they went places ... and there needs to be an incubation period,"
"Current seasonal flu vaccines remain effective at reducing severe illness and hospitalization, including the currently circulating viruses,"
California is experiencing spread of a mutated influenza A H3N2 subclade K strain that has circulated globally. Infected individuals typically experience body aches, fever, cough, and headache and many feel particularly ill. The subclade K mutation may not be fully covered by the current seasonal vaccine, which raises concern about vaccine match. Flu test positivity in California was about 15% as of Jan. 3, down from 17% on Dec. 27, while hospitalizations rose to about 3.8 admissions per 100,000. Flu activity often increases after holiday travel and incubation periods. Vaccination remains the best protection and reduces severe illness and hospitalization.
Read at SFGATE
Unable to calculate read time
Collection
[
|
...
]