Flu virus activity is on the rise in San Antonio, according to the San Antonio Metropolitan Health District, which reported one local pediatric death in addition to an increase in the number of positive test results at clinics and hospital throughout the city during the last week of November.
The Bexar County child who died last month marks the third pediatric death from complications of the flu this year in Texas, according to the Centers for Disease Control and Prevention.
Anita Kurian, assistant director of Metro Health’s communicable disease division, said that while this flu season got off to an early start, “it did not start early and abruptly.” Since the health department began tracking flu in October, the increase has been “slow and steady” throughout the city.
“We are just seeing flu activity begin to pick up,” Kurian said. The weeks beginning Nov. 10 and Nov. 17 saw an increase in positive test results and flu-like symptoms, she added.
While the CDC listed Texas among seven states, along with Puerto Rico, where flu activity was rated as “high” for the week beginning Nov. 10, Kurian said that “compared to the past, activity is much lower this year” for San Antonio.
Of the 4,214 influenza tests performed in San Antonio and Bexar County so far this season, 293 were positive for either influenza type A or B.
Kurian said there are high rates of influenza type B, which was not a predominant strain in 2018.
Flu viruses are detected year-round in the United States, but are most common during the fall and winter. The exact timing and duration of flu seasons can vary, but activity often begins to increase in October and can last as late as May. Peak flu season is typically between December and May, according to the CDC, which maintains nationwide flu activity as reported by county health authorities.
