I hope you are done with all of your shopping and all the gifts are wrapped and put under the tree. Unfortunately, Merry Christmas means welcoming the unwanted guest that we all hate. You know who I am talking about. No, it’s not the hot shot college student who will be telling you the benefits of socialism or the latest Tik Tok influencer they saw who is telling them how cool antidepressants are and how life is not fair. No, it is not the drunk uncle because no one drinks any more and more people are being “California sober”. I’m talking about the flu. The flu season in United States is currently experiencing a significant increase in cases with at least 14 states reporting high or very high flu activity. Very high activity is noted in New Jersey, Rhode Island and Louisiana. High activity is found in New Mexico, Idaho, Michigan, North Carolina, South Carolina, Georgia, Washington DC, Connecticut, Maryland and Massachusetts. I recommend if you have family coming in from these states, please do not let them into your home. Obviously, I am kidding. Fortunately, California is classified as being moderate when it comes to current cases, but this will all change once everyone travels for the holidays. Another negative issue with this current strain, H3N2, specifically the Subclade K variant, which is present in 89% of the documented cases, is this strain was not included in this year’s flu vaccination. It presents with classic symptoms which include fever, cough, headache, body aches, sore throat and just feeling like… (insert adjective of your choice) 🙂 If you develop sudden onset of any of these symptoms it is more than likely the flu. The key is prevention. Make sure you are washing your hands whenever you can. If you feel sick you should not be out and you can wear masks to decrease the risk of spread to your spouse unless you are of the belief misery loves company. The take-home message is if you are sick, you should stay home, rest, increase your fluids and if symptoms do not improve within 72 hours let me know. Have a great Christmas and I hope the unwanted guest stays away.
Doug
