MU Health Care reports more than 100 flu cases in single week, higher than total for entire 2020-21 season

MU Health Care recorded a spike in flu cases in the two weeks ahead of Thanksgiving.

More than 100 positive tests were recorded in just a single week, the hospital said Tuesday, noting the number of positive cases is not Boone County-specific, as MU Health serves patients from many counties across the state.

However, that one-week number exceeds the total amount of positive results for influenza recorded by the hospital over the entire 2020-21 flu season. 

Dr. Christelle Ilboudo, medical director of infection control and prevention at MU Health, said at this time last year, few cases of influenza were reported, which she attributes to less travel and increased mitigation strategies amid COVID-19. No hospitalizations related to flu symptoms have been recorded so far this season, she added.

More:Q&A: MU Health doctor shares advice for parents about child COVID-19 vaccines

Patients can contract COVID-19 and have the flu at the same time, Ilboudo said. But due to cases of the flu being low last year, it is hard to say what kind of physical effects having both at the same time would have, she said.

Unlike COVID-19, the influenza vaccination status of those who have been infected with the flu is not available to doctors, she said. 

"Vaccination rates have not been as much as we would have hoped for this season," Ilboudo said of people receiving their flu shot.

Much like COVID-19, she encourages vaccination against influenza for not only one's own protection, but to protect loved ones as people travel for the holidays. 

Individuals with pre-existing chronic health conditions are more susceptible to hospitalization due to an infection of the flu. 

Flu cases this year are primarily affecting teens and younger adults in their 20s and 30s, Ilboudo said.

"I think part of it is mitigation strategies are falling to the wayside," she said. "People are taking more risks in terms of social activities."

Her biggest concern is the strain that an increase in influenza and COVID-19 cases could have on local hospitals.

"Our concern really is are we going to be able to take care of those who get sick enough to need hospitalization," she said.

Although the flu vaccine has about a 30% chance of keeping one from being infected, the main purpose of the shots — and why health care workers continue to push them — is their over-80% reduction in the need for those infected to be hospitalized. 

Similar to the COVID-19 vaccine, there is a two-week period after receiving the flu vaccine before it takes full effect, Ilboudo said.