PHILADELPHIA (KYW Newsradio) — Before we got to flu season, there was a lot of concern in the medical community about the repercussions of combining a roaring pandemic with even a normal number of flu cases. But fast forward to March, and flu cases are down dramatically across the board.
"We're seeing unprecedented low numbers in flu activity, which I'm not sure that any of us expected. We are happy about it but still unsure of what that may mean for future seasons coming forward," says Dr. Maryann Lauletta, medical director of Inspira LIFE (Living Independently for Elders) in South Jersey.
Lauletta says mask-wearing and social distancing were big parts of why flu cases are down, but she doesn't think they're the only reasons. She says "remote work, schools being closed, decreased global travel, decreased capacity in places where people do gather," as well as bringing attention to the importance of hand washing helped as well.
Lauletta says the proof is in the positive flu test rates. "(This year) the cumulative percent positive rate of all tests performed is about 0.2%. When you look at the prior three flu seasons, those percent positives were in the 20 to 30% range."
She also says more people were inclined to get the flu vaccine. She says about 20 million more flu vaccines were distributed in the U.S. compared to last year.
However, scientists preparing for next flu season and those vaccines have less data than usual due to low case numbers. Lauletta says for now they are studying the strains they already know about, and they are looking down under.
"The other thing that we look to is activity in the Southern Hemisphere like in Australia and South Africa to see what happens during the spring and summer months as a predictor to what we may be able to expect in the Northern Hemisphere during the fall and winter months."
