US EditionA new virus variant and lagging vaccinations may mean the US is in for a severe flu season
The H3N2 subclade K variant has seven mutations that may reduce vaccine effectiveness, causing concern for a potentially severe U.S. flu season amid delayed surveillance data.
- This past week, the United States entered flu season with subclade K, a variant of influenza A, threatening harsher months ahead as seen in Japan, the United Kingdom, and Canada, the Global Center for Health Security reports.
- Earlier this year, a new H3N2 variant emerged after multiple mutations, appearing after strain selection, so vaccine makers in the Northern Hemisphere did not target subclade K, creating a mismatch.
- According to the CDC's FluView for the week ending Nov. 8, flu activity is low nationally but rising, especially in children, with test positivity, hospitalizations and WastewaterSCAN data also increasing; early lab data show about 63 percent of influenza A samples are H3N2.
- Experts emphasize that the vaccine still substantially reduces severe outcomes, and the Centers for Disease Control and Prevention recommends annual flu vaccination for everyone ages 6 months and older, stressing protection for people over 65 and young children.
- Amid a reporting gap caused by a 44‑day government shutdown, Dr. Natalie Azar said `We're flying a little bit blind` on Nov. 13, while a BMJ study predicts a severe U.K. season and experts say subclade K is likely in the U.S.
62 Articles
62 Articles
U.S. Braces for a Rough Flu Season
Alright. You’ve enjoyed the aesthetics of the cold months long enough. Time to pack up the cutesy cozy bullshit and get down to brass tacks: this flu season is going to suck. That news comes to us from researchers studying the early flu data, though they didn’t quite say it that way. Speaking to NPR, Richard Webby of St. Jude Children’s Research Hospital says signs are pointing to a “big season.” And the first warning flare didn’t even go up her…
U.S. Braces for a Rough Flu Season
Alright. You’ve enjoyed the aesthetics of the cold months long enough. Time to pack up the cutesy cozy bullshit and get down to brass tacks: this flu season is going to suck. That news comes to us from researchers studying the early flu data, though they didn’t quite say it that way. Speaking to NPR, Richard Webby of St. Jude Children’s Research Hospital says signs are pointing to a “big season.” And the first warning flare didn’t even go up her…
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