Arkansas flu deaths have surpassed the 2009 total, making it the second-deadliest year for flu in the state in more than 30 years, health officials said Friday.
Fifty-seven people have died from the flu in Arkansas this season, said Kerry Krell, an Arkansas Department of Health spokesman. She said a flu season starts with the first cases of flu and ends with the last cases.
Flu activity in the state is slowing, with its intensity level ranked minimal and sporadic, according to a report from the department. There were 120 flu cases reported to the department last week. During peak fluseason in January, the department was receiving reports of more than a 1,000 a week, according to data from the department.
However, the flu death toll could climb, even as flu season winds down, health officials said. People can fight secondary infections brought on by the flu for months.
The 2012 to 2013 flu season had 61 deaths, the highest total in more than three decades, said Dirk Haselow, state epidemiologist and medical director for communicable disease and immunizations with the Health Department.
The 2009 H1N1 strain was the predominant strain this year, Haselow said. The strain has not been predominant since it first emerged in 2009, when the state recorded 54 flu deaths.
“This was one of our bad years,” Haselow said. “It is even worse in terms of deaths than 2009. It is a little bit hit or miss on what happens each season, even if there is a bad season last year doesn’t mean there is going to be a light season the next.”
H1N1 has historically affected younger, healthier individuals more than other strains of the flu. Haselow said that 39, or 68 percent, of the 57 deaths this year were from people between the ages of 25 and 64. During last year’s flu season, there were 12 deaths, or 20 percent, for this age group.
Last year 42, or 69 percent, of flu deaths in the state were from people 65 or older, according to data from the department. Adults 65 or older made up 14, 0r 25 percent, of the deaths this year.
“These numbers should serve as a reminder that everyone is at risk and that everyone should be vaccinated,” Haselow said. “Everyone is essentially eligible for a flu vaccination. Everyone is at risk of getting the flu, and there is nothing that can be used to predict how bad of the flu you are going to get.”
The department gave 270,000 flu shots in Arkansas this year, Haselow said. He said 195,000 shots were given to children in schools by the department.
The Centers for Disease Control and Prevention estimates 20,000 children younger than 5 are hospitalized for influenza every year.
A study from the CDC published in the Journal of Infectious Disease on Thursday found that getting a fluvaccine reduces the risk of children being admitted into intensive care units by 74 percent.
The study analyzed medical records for 216 children between the ages of 6 months and 17 years, a news release from the CDC states. The children were admitted in intensive care units at the time for flu. The CDC also tested to confirm the children had the flu.
The study found that 39, or 18 percent, of the children in the ICU had a flu shot.
Alicia Fry, medical officer in the CDC’s influenza division, led the study. A previous study has shown that the flu shot reduced hospitalization for children between the ages of 3 to 9 by 82 percent.
“The children in ICU are at a spectrum of severity right below death,” Fry said. “It is important to look at theeffects of vaccination with these severe outcomes.”
About 118 of the children in the study had at least one underlying chronic medical condition, the study reports. This could include asthma, diabetes or developmental delays.
“The vaccination for these children with underlying medical conditions was very low,” Fry said. “I think it is important that all parents get their children vaccinated but even more so if they have an underlying medical condition.”
The CDC reported four pediatric deaths between March 16 and March 22 in its most recent flu report released March 22. It states more than 500 cases of the flu were reported. The CDC does not track adult flu deaths.
A majority of states in the country were showing low or minimal flu activity, the report states. Texas and New York City continued to have moderate activity.
The World Health Organization is reporting that influenza activity globally seems to be declining overall.
Northwest Arkansas, Pages 9 on 03/29/2014