Dr. Klotman’s Week 312 video address is available here. My summary notes follow:
Measles
- CDC reports 1291 cases so far this year – 97% among persons not having completed the recommended vaccination schedule
- 62 of these individuals hospitalized
- The hot spots continue to be South Carolina, Utah, and Florida
- 25% of the way through 2026, we’re already at 50% of last year’s cases
COVID
- % test positivity in ER tests is about 4.7%
- COVID currently accounts for only 0.6% of all ER visits
- COVID hospitalizations and deaths continue to be very low
Flu
- This Flu season is coming to an end
- Last week, there were 11 pediatric deaths attributed to Influenza for a total of 90 deaths this season
- Influenza B is dominating the Flu cases late this season as in prior years
- WHO has issued recommendations regarding protein-based Flu vaccines for next year; they will include H3N2 sub-clade K which was not in this season’s vaccine
H5N1 Bird Flu
- California elephant seals have been infected, and guided tours of those seal colonies have been cancelled
- Hong Kong has reported 3 cases of avian flu among Chinese people in Guandong and Hunan provinces; so far, none of these has been fatal
- Poultry infections of bird flu have been reported in North Vietnam, and the DNA analysis shows ongoing mutation of the H5N1 virus