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As families gather around the table for the holidays, health officials are warning people to be aware of a new “super flu” variant that’s leading to an increase in cases throughout the state.
Flu levels are high in Redwood City, Palo Alto and Sunnyvale, and are on the rise, according to Dec. 23 wastewater data from WastewaterSCAN.
The strain, a new variant of the flu known as “H3N2 Flu A subclade K,” is causing an “active, early” flu season, according to a Dec. 19 message from the California Department of Public Health.
The state is warning that there’s been a notable rise in positive tests of the flu among children and that although hospitalizations are low, they are expected to increase. A flu outbreak in Marin County kept nearly a third of the students in one school district home last week, the San Francisco Chronicle reported.
Test positivity in the Bay Area jumped from 4.9% on Dec. 6 to nearly 9% a week later, according to state data. Hospitalizations, along with emergency department visits, also rose during that period.
“Our most recent local data show that flu-related emergency department visits, test positivity and wastewater signals are rising, but they’re still mostly below the levels of the 2023-24 and 2024-25 seasons,” Faizus Amin, a health communications management analyst for San Mateo County, said in an email. “We typically see flu pick up around the holidays as people travel and gather indoors. It’s still a good time for the flu shot, and people can consider getting a COVID-19 vaccine at the same visit.”
Dr. Grace Lee, a pediatric infectious disease physician at Stanford Medicine Children’s Health, said in an email that Lucile Packard Children’s Hospital is beginning to see an increase in hospitalizations from the flu, but that it is still early in the season, which typically peaks between December and February.
“However, this year the season started earlier in Japan and Europe,” Lee said. “While initial reports from other countries indicate more severe disease than usual, we will need to continue to monitor cases in the U.S.”
Nearly 90% of the flu cases reported nationally during the week ending Dec. 13 were the subclade K variant, according to the Centers for Diseases and Prevention. COVID-19 numbers remain low, according to local wastewater data.
Dr. Robert Hopkins Jr., medical director at the National Foundation for Infectious Diseases, told TODAY that the mutated virus came too late for scientists to update the annual flu shot. The vaccine still offers protection from other influenza strains and reduces the severity of the illness, experts say.
“In every season, flu vaccines can offer protection against severe disease and complications from flu,” Lee said. “But individuals can only be protected if they receive the vaccine.”
From November through March, the San Mateo County Health Department is requiring people, with the exception of patients, to wear face masks in skilled nursing facilities. Santa Clara County also has a masking requirement during the flu season, but it applies to all “patient care areas of health care delivery facilities” and does not exempt patients.
Recommendations
Santa Clara County recommends a yearly flu vaccination for everyone 6 months and older, and particularly for groups that are more likely to get very sick from flu, including:
- People over 65 years old
- Young children
- Pregnant women (especially during the second or third trimesters) to protect infants from flu after they are born
- People who have health conditions such as asthma, diabetes or heart disease
Neil Maniar, the director of Northeastern University’s master of public health program, noted that it takes about two weeks to build a solid immune response to the vaccine. People do develop some immunity after a few days though.
“Flu is not the only respiratory viral infection circulating this winter, so we always recommend practicing good hand hygiene (wash with soap and water or use hand sanitizers), staying home when sick to prevent spreading germs to others, and staying up to date on vaccines,” said Lee of Stanford Medicine Children’s Health.
It’s best to stay home if you are sick, avoid close contact with people who are sick, wear a mask (especially in indoor, crowded places), cover coughs and sneezes, and wash hands frequently, a Santa Clara County Public Health Department spokesperson said in an email.
Pharmacies sell over-the-counter combination COVID-19, flu A and flu B tests. Some also offer testing in store.
People can also take prescription flu antiviral drugs – like Tamiflu — to help lessen symptoms or shorten the time they are sick with the flu. These medications work best if taken within a day or two of when symptoms start, and are recommended for those at higher risk of flu-related complications such as pregnant women and people with asthma, chronic lung disease, diabetes or heart disease, according to the CDC website.
For the latest respiratory virus data, go to Santa Clara County’s website, San Mateo County Health’s website and the state’s Department of Public Health website.
