Most people have COVID on the brain, but 'you have to respect the flu,' doctor says

While the number of COVID-19 cases continues to increase statewide, Long Islanders have another virus to contend with: the flu.

Since Oct. 9, the state has recorded 3,698 lab-confirmed cases of influenza, the highest number during this eight-week period in three years, according to state data. More than 700 of those cases were on Long Island.

Health experts are urging New Yorkers to get their annual shot. The flu vaccine is recommended for everyone 6 months and older.

"I know everyone’s head is full of COVID right now, but you have to respect the flu," said Dr. Bruce Hirsch, attending physician in infectious diseases at New Hyde Park-based Northwell Health. "Flu is something that the oldest, the youngest and the most vulnerable die from."

Influenza activity around the country is low but is "slowly increasing," especially among children and young adults, according to the Centers for Disease Control and Prevention. The agency said that more than 80% of cases detected in public health laboratories are among people between the ages of 5 and 24.

Outbreaks have been reported at some colleges, including the University of Michigan, where CDC investigators are working with local health officials.

"We normally see the flu virus hitting in sort of blocks of ages one at a time," said Dr. Eve Meltzer Krief of Huntington Village Pediatrics. "So far, I’ve seen an uptick in older adolescents and college kids coming in with really severe flu symptoms, and are very uncomfortable."

Robert Stahl, executive director of Student Health Services at Hofstra University, said there have been a few flu cases on campus. The university offers flu shots for students several times a week.

"It would seem our COVID control measures are helping control the flu," he said. "But we have been really trying to get the message out there to our students about getting their flu vaccine, and if they feel sick, to stay home."

Stahl said Hofstra has administered more than 600 flu shots, and a survey of students showed many more received their shot with a local doctor or urgent care center.

The COVID-19 impact

Masks, social distancing and other methods used to prevent people from being infected with COVID-19 also have helped ward off the flu. But it also could have paved the way for more colds and upper-respiratory infections, some infectious disease experts said.

"There has been discussion about whether the inadvertent health impact of isolation, among other things, is that the immune system was not stimulated or challenged," Hirsch said.

In addition, Meltzer Krief said, even with kids back in school and wearing masks, they are not distancing the way they were a year or so ago.

"We're definitely seeing increased transmission of the types of illnesses that we normally see in pediatrics," said Meltzer Krief, who sits on the executive council of the Long Island-Brooklyn/Queens chapter of the American Academy of Pediatrics. "It would probably be much more if they weren’t masked."

Some health experts fear people have delayed getting their flu shots this year because they have been preoccupied with getting COVID-19 vaccines and boosters.

"I’m concerned about vaccine fatigue," Hirsch said. "Some people are thinking, ‘I got my COVID vaccine, I got my boosters. I’m not getting a flu shot this year. I’m done.’ People need to be mindful of the huge public impact influenza can have."

The CDC said only 39.2% of kids nationally had received their flu shot as of Nov. 21, compared with 45.4% as of Nov. 21, 2020.

And fewer adults appear to be getting their flu shots at pharmacies this year: 30.9 million as of Nov. 13, compared with 43 million as of Nov. 14, 2020.

"Maybe people didn’t come in for their routine checkups, but for whatever reason there seems to be less flu vaccination than normal years," Meltzer Krief said. "That’s very concerning to pediatricians because although most people think of the elderly as being really susceptible to serious illness from the flu, children under 5 and in particular under 2 can get very seriously sick from the flu."

She hopes the feared "twindemic" of COVID and flu, which was avoided last year, does not happen this season. Long Island's 6.04% positivity rate in testing for COVID-19 this week was the highest level in nearly a year, according to state data. Suffolk and Nassau counties have been seeing nearly 2,000 new COVID-19 cases daily, attributed mainly to the delta variant and the holiday surge.

"We're concerned about what the next few months will bring," Meltzer Krief said.

By Lisa L. Colangelo

lisa.colangelo@newsday.com@lisalcolangelo

Lisa joined Newsday as a staff writer in 2019. She previously worked at amNewYork, the New York Daily News and the Asbury Park Press covering politics, government and general assignment.