Flu activity 'decreased sharply' last week in Pennsylvania, state says

Morning Call - 3/28/2019

March 28-- Mar. 28--Pennsylvania saw a sharp decrease in flu activity across the state last week, the Health Department reports, marking the first significant dip in influenza cases this season.

The state may be rounding the corner in terms of how quickly the cases have been piling up, but all its regions are still experiencing higher-than-epidemic levels of activity overall. Geographically, the flu is still widespread, with the highest activity reported in the western part of the state, according to the influenza report for the week ending March 23.

The eleventh week of the flu season ended added about 7,000 cases to the season total, which is now 79,450.

It also added seven adult deaths associated with the flu, bringing that total to 96. Two children have also died of the flu this season.

A quarter of the adults who died were between the ages of 50 and 64, the state reports. The majority were 65 or older, though this age group is least likely to go to the emergency room for flu-like symptoms, state data shows.

How is your county doing? Despite the sharp decrease overall, some counties still had a larger increase of cases in this week's report than previous.

Berks: 8 percent increase, to 3,188 total cases

Bucks: 5 percent increase, to 2,435 total cases

Lackawanna: 16 percent increase, to 1,498 total cases

Lehigh: 7.7 percent increase, to 3,291 total cases

Luzerne: 8.6 percent increase, to 2,517 total cases

Monroe: 7 percent increase, to 910 total cases

Montgomery: 7.5 percent increase, to 5,599 total cases

Northampton: 8 percent increase, to 2,853 total cases

Schuylkill: 12 percent increase, to 759 total cases

kdwyer@mcall.com

610-820-6554