(LOUISIANA) — The first person has died of bird flu in the United States, the Louisiana Department of Health confirmed on Monday.
The patient, who was exposed to non-commercial backyard flock and wild birds, was over age 65 and had underlying medical conditions, officials said.
Last month, the Centers for Disease Control and Prevention confirmed the patient was experiencing the first case of severe bird flu in the U.S.
At the time, a spokesperson from the Louisiana Department of Health told ABC News the patient was experiencing severe respiratory illness related to bird flu infection and was in critical condition. The patient remains the only human case of bird flu confirmed in Louisiana.
The U.S. has seen an increase in human cases of bird flu, or avian influenza, since April, when the first human case was reported.
As of Jan. 3, there have been 66 human cases of bird flu reported in the U.S., according to CDC data.
Signs and symptoms of infection in humans often include sore throat, cough, fever, runny or stuffy nose, headache, muscle or body aches, fatigue and shortness of breath, the CDC says. Less common symptoms include nausea, vomiting, diarrhea and seizures.
Infections can range from no symptoms or mild illness, such as flu-like symptoms, to more severe illness, such as pneumonia that could require hospitalizations, the CDC says.
Almost all confirmed cases have had direct contact with infected cattle or infected livestock. Aside from the case confirmed in the Louisiana patient, cases have been mild, and patients had all recovered after receiving antiviral medication, according to the CDC and state health officials.
One previous case in Missouri was hospitalized, but health officials pointed to other health conditions aside from bird flu infection involved in the patient’s admission to the hospital.
The Louisiana Department of Health and the CDC say there is no evidence of person-to-person transmission and the risk to the general public is low.
However, those who work with birds, poultry or cows — or have recreational exposure to them — are at higher risk.
The CDC recommends staying away from sick or dead wild birds, poultry and other animals and, if contact is unavoidable, using personal protective equipment.
The agency also suggests not touching surfaces or materials contaminated with saliva, mucous or animal feces from wild or domestic birds and animals confirmed or suspected to have bird flu as well as not consuming raw milk or raw milk products.
The U.S. Department of Agriculture issued a new federal order last month that raw milk samples nationwide will be collected and shared with the department in order to test for bird flu.
(CHINA) — Chinese health officials are reportedly monitoring an increase in cases of human metapneumovirus (HMPV).
There is currently no evidence that the outbreak is out of the ordinary or that a new respiratory virus or illness has emerged in China.
A spokesperson for the World Health Organization (WHO) said data from China indicates “there has been a recent rise in acute respiratory infections” but that “the overall scale and intensity of respiratory infectious diseases in China this year are lower than last year.”
Cases of HMPV have been steadily increasing in the U.S. since November 2024 with 1.94% of weekly tests positive for HMPV as of Dec. 28, 2024, according to data from the Centers for Disease Control and Prevention (CDC). By comparison, 18.71% of weekly tests were positive for flu and 7.10% were positive for COVID during the same week, the data shows.
Public health experts told ABC News that HMPV is well-known to health care professionals and commonly circulates during respiratory virus season.
“This is that winter respiratory virus season, indeed,” Dr. William Schaffner, a professor of preventive medicine at Vanderbilt University Medical Center in Nashville, told ABC News. “So, all of these respiratory viruses — influenza, COVID, RSV, human metapneumovirus — they all increase this time of the year, in part because we get so close to each other.”
“We spend time indoors and, of course, all of this holiday traveling, family get-together, and parties have been opportunities for us to get close together and for the virus to be transmitted,” he continued.
Here’s what you need to know about HMPV, including what it is, how it spreads and how to treat it.
What is HMPV?
HMPV is a virus that can cause upper and lower respiratory disease, according to the CDC.
It was discovered in 2001 and is in the Pneumoviridae family along with respiratory syncytial virus, or RSV, the CDC said.
Over the years, there has been a better understanding and awareness of HMPV, which has led to broader testing, according to the federal health agency.
“Human metapneumovirus is another one of those respiratory viruses that we’re now appreciating more because we have the diagnostic capability to actually diagnose it more readily in hospitals, emergency rooms and even in physicians’ offices,” Schaffner said. “Now we have diagnostic panels that can tell you whether you have influenza or COVID or RSV or human metapneumovirus.”
What are the symptoms?
HMPV has an incubation period of three to six days, according to the CDC.
Symptoms include cough, nasal congestion, fever and shortness of breath, the federal health agency said.
“It’s oftentimes indistinguishable from the other respiratory viruses, because we don’t usually check for it unless somebody is really ill,” Dr. Peter Chin-Hong, a professor of medicine and an infectious diseases specialist at the University of California, San Francisco, told ABC News.
Young children and adults aged 65 and older are among those at the highest risk of HMPV progressing to bronchitis or pneumonia.
How does it spread?
HMPV can spread through secretions from coughing and sneezing, close personal contact and touching objects that have the virus and then touching the eyes, nose or mouth, according to the CDC.
In the U.S., like other respiratory viruses, HMPV cases typically rise in the winter and decrease in the spring.
Chin-Hong said most people are exposed to HMPV by the time they’re five years old. People can get reinfected, but symptoms are typically milder.
Those who are immunocompromised or are older may experience more severe symptoms if they are reinfected.
Is there treatment for HMPV?
There are no antivirals to treat HMPV, so treatment consists of providing supportive care to patients with moderate or severe symptoms, the experts said.
“If you’re wheezing, we’ll give bronchodilators,” Chin-Hong said, referencing a medication that relaxes and opens the airways and helps clear mucus from the lungs. “If you’re dehydrated, we give fluid; we reduce the fever.”
Chin-Hong said that because people may develop co-infections, including bacterial infections, antibiotics may need to be given.
How do I prevent HMPV?
There is no vaccine to prevent HMPV, so prevention includes following basic hygiene including washing hands with soap and water, covering the nose and mouth when coughing and sneezing and staying home when sick.
“People who are in this high-risk group for any of these viruses — particularly older people, people who are frail, people who are immune-compromised — if they go indoors where there are a lot of people, [they should] put their mask back on and also consider social distancing,” Schaffner said.
Chin-Hong and Schaffner added that it’s important for people to receive vaccines for other respiratory illnesses including COVID-19, flu and RSV.
Getting vaccinated against other respiratory viruses can reduce the risk of co-infection and may help health care professionals rule out certain illnesses much sooner.
“Sure, you can get serious disease from HMPV itself, but if you get HMPV plus pneumococcus or HMPV plus influenza or RSV, it could be much worse,” Chim-Hong said. “During respiratory virus season, you want to minimize the probability of co-infection.”
ABC News’ Youri Benadjaoud contributed to this report
(NEW YORK) — The U.S. Surgeon General issued an advisory on Friday warning of a link between alcohol consumption and cancer risk.
Alcohol consumption is the third leading preventable cause of cancer in the United States, after tobacco and obesity, according to the Surgeon General’s advisory.
For some cancers, including breast, mouth, and throat cancers, the risk of developing cancer may increase with one or fewer drinks per day, the advisory states.
Despite a growing body of evidence, fewer than half of Americans recognize alcohol consumption as a risk factor for cancer, according to the advisory.
A person’s risk of developing cancer due to alcohol consumption is also determined by other factors, including biological, economic, environmental and social, the advisory says.
“Alcohol is a well-established, preventable cause of cancer responsible for about 100,000 cases of cancer and 20,000 cancer deaths annually in the United States – greater than the 13,500 alcohol-associated traffic crash fatalities per year in the U.S. – yet the majority of Americans are unaware of this risk,” U.S. Surgeon General Dr. Vivek Murthy said in a statement. “This Advisory lays out steps we can all take to increase awareness of alcohol’s cancer risk and minimize harm.”
This is a developing story. Please check back for updates.
(NEW YORK) — The Mediterranean diet — which emphasizes fruits, vegetables, lean proteins and whole grains — has once again topped U.S. News and World Report’s annual ranking of best diets.
The publication on Friday named the diet the best overall diet for the eighth year in a row.
The Mediterranean diet scored a 4.8 out of 5 based on an evaluation of several factors, including nutritional completeness, health risks and benefits, long-term sustainability and evidence-based effectiveness, according to U.S. News and World Report.
The diet also scored the top spot in 11 additional categories in the publication’s annual rankings, including easiest-to-follow, gut health, weight loss and mental health.
The DASH (Dietary Approaches to Stop Hypertension), which focuses on whole foods and low sodium, was ranked second on the Best Diets list, followed by the Flexitarian, MIND and Mayo diets. All of the top five diets embrace a plant-forward philosophy, minimizing the intake of red meats, processed foods, inflammatory fats, high-sugar foods and sugar-sweetened beverages, rather than enforcing strict rules or banning entire food groups.
If you’re looking to start the Mediterranean diet, here is what you need to know.
What is the Mediterranean diet?
The Mediterranean diet is not one way of eating but a broad term used to describe the eating habits popularized in the countries bordering the Mediterranean Sea including Italy, Greece, Morocco, Spain and Lebanon.
The way of eating focuses on the quality of foods consumed rather than focusing on a single nutrient or food group, according to U.S. News and World Report.
Nutrition experts say there’s no one diet that will work for everyone. Certain diets may be more beneficial depending on your circumstances, and some may be harmful depending on your health conditions. Anyone considering changes to their diet should consult with their doctor.
What types of foods are eaten on the Mediterranean diet?
Overall, the diet is mostly plant-based and focuses on healthy fats.
Healthy fats emphasized in the Mediterranean diet include extra virgin olive oil, avocados, nuts, salmon and sardines, according to the American Heart Association.
All types of vegetables and fruits are encouraged on the diet, as are non-meat sources of protein like beans and other legumes.
Fish is encouraged at least twice weekly and other animal proteins like poultry, eggs, cheese and yogurt are encouraged in smaller portions. Red meat consumption is should be limited to a few times a month.
The main source of hydration should be water.
Are any foods prohibited?
No, the Mediterranean diet does not totally eliminate any foods or food groups.
However, it is recommended to limit foods such as butter, processed foods like frozen meals and candy, and refined grains and oils. Fruits are encouraged for dessert over sugary sweets.
U.S. News and World Report describes the diet as leaving “little room for the saturated fat, added sugars and sodium that inundate the standard American diet.”
What are the health benefits?
According to U.S. News and World Report, “People who eat a Mediterranean-style diet have longer lifespans, report a higher quality of life and are less likely to suffer from chronic diseases such as cancer and heart disease.”
In a study of over 60,000 people, those who followed the Mediterranean diet more closely had a lower risk of dementia, regardless of genetic risk.
The American Heart Association says the Mediterranean diet can “play a big role” in preventing heart disease and stroke and reducing risk factors like diabetes, high cholesterol and high blood pressure. Consuming virgin olive oil, in particular, may help the body “remove excess cholesterol from arteries and keep blood vessels open,” according to the AHA.
Citing research, the Mayo Clinic touts the Mediterranean diet as a way to help maintain a healthy weight, improve brain health, increase longevity, support a healthy gut and lower the risk of certain cancers.
Dr. Brent Gawey, a member of the ABC News Medical Unit, contributed to this report.
(NEW YORK) — If you’re feeling hungover from New Year’s Eve champagne or had one too many boozy eggnogs over the holidays, let January be a fresh start.
Taking the challenge of going dry in January, or Dry January, i.e. having no alcohol for the entire month, is one resolution that might actually make you healthier.
The Dry January campaign was started in 2013 by Alcohol Change U.K., a charity focused on reducing alcohol harm. For the past several years, the initiative has proved popular in the United States and other countries too.
What are the health benefits of Dry January?
While research on how quitting alcohol for a month affects your body is still limited, several studies have shown psychological and health benefits.
Over one dozen staff members at the magazine New Scientist teamed up with researchers at the Institute for Liver and Digestive Health at the University College London Medical School in 2013 to investigate the benefits of Dry January.
The staff members, who all considered themselves “normal” drinkers, underwent baseline testing with blood samples, liver ultrasound scans and questionnaires. For the next five weeks, 10 of them stopped drinking and four drank their normal amounts.
The people who stopped drinking had lower levels of liver fat (which can be a precursor to liver damage), improved blood sugars and lower cholesterol than they did at the beginning of the month. They also reported improved sleep and concentration. In contrast, the four people who kept drinking saw no benefit.
Another study out of the U.K. had nearly 100 participants abstain from drinking alcohol for a month and another nearly 50 participants continue drinking alcohol as normal.
They found that moderate-heavy drinkers who took a break from alcohol had improved insulin resistance, weight, blood pressure, and cancer-related growth factors.
The researchers do warn, however, that the study does not show that a short-term ‘detox’ period is all that is required to ‘refresh’ the liver or achieve other health gains. Abstaining from alcohol for a month is only one part of addressing negative effects from longer-term alcohol consumption.
People who drink excessive amounts of alcohol are at higher risk of death and many medical conditions.
People who drink unhealthy amounts of alcohol are more likely to have high blood pressure, heart disease, liver disease, nerve damage, infections including pneumonia and even certain cancers like breast cancer.
Dr. Fulton Crews, director of the Center for Alcohol Studies at the University of North Carolina at Chapel Hill, said attempting to stop drinking for Dry January is a good opportunity for people to see if they have an actual addiction to alcohol.
“Many people are in denial about their drinking and hazardous drinking, and if they try to stop and are not able to, it really points out to them their weakness,” Crews told ABC News. “If they can’t stop for a month, they would realize that they have a problem.
“Either that or they do it, and they realize it’s not that hard for them,” said Crews, who described Dry January as a “good idea.”
Experts say Dry January may be especially helpful to those who consistently drink over the recommended amount of two drinks per day for men and one drink per day for women.
Excessive drinking includes binge drinking, defined as consuming five or more drinks for men in a single occasion and four or more drinks for women, and heavy drinking, defined as consuming 15 or more drinks per week for men or eight drinks or more for women). A standard drink is 12 ounces of a regular beer, 8 ounces of a malt liquor, 5 ounces of a glass of wine, and 1.5 ounces of a spirit, according to the Centers for Disease Control and Prevention.
For those individuals who drink alcohol within the recommended limits, Crews said he is “not sure there would be any observable benefits.”
“I don’t see any clear potential for a moderate drinking person to stop drinking,” he said.
If you do choose to participate in Dry January, Crews shared his advice for sticking to the program.
“Try to avoid temptation by maybe putting all the alcohol out of the house,” he said.
Does Dry January prompt bigger change for some?
Staying dry for January may also help jump-start people to give up alcohol for longer.
Although most people who participate in Dry January return to drinking, up to 8% stay dry six months later, according to Public Health England and the British Medical Journal.
And those who go back to drinking drink less. A 2015 study conducted in the U.K. and published in the journal Health Psychology found that people who participated in Dry January drank less often, had fewer drinks when they did drink and were drunk less often six months after Dry January was completed.
Dry January participants were also better able to refuse alcoholic drinks. These benefits were even seen in people who did not complete the whole month of Dry January.
It might seem daunting to stop drinking alcohol for a whole month. But a 2020 Alcohol and Alcoholism study found that nearly 70% of people completed the Dry January Challenge in 2019.
If you are concerned about yourself or a loved one, call the Substance Abuse and Mental Health Services Administration’s (SAMSA) confidential, free, 24-hour-a-day, 365-day-a-year helpline at 1-800-662-HELP (4357). For information and resources about alcohol-related problems and health, visit the website of the National Institute of Alcohol Abuse and Alcoholism (NIAAA) HERE.
Editor’s note: This piece was originally published on Jan. 3, 2018.
(NEW YORK) — Federal health officials have begun collecting samples of aged raw cow’s milk cheese across the U.S. to test for bird flu, the Food and Drug Administration announced.
Sample collection started at the end of this month and is expected to be completed by the end of March 2025, the FDA said Monday. If needed, the agency said it will extend the collection period.
It comes after the U.S. Department of Agriculture issued a federal order earlier this month that raw milk samples nationwide would be collected and shared with the agency to be tested for bird flu.
The FDA said it plans to collect 300 samples of raw cow’s milk cheese that has been aged for at least 60 days from warehouses and distribution centers across the country.
Samples will be tested with a PCR test, which looks for genetic material from the virus, and will be completed within one week of collection, according to the FDA. Samples that indicate the presence of the virus will undergo viability testing.
Viability testing will be done by injecting part of the virus into an embryonated egg and analyzing if it grows or multiplies.
Raw milk cheese is made with unpasteurized milk. In the U.S., cheese can be made from raw milk but must be aged a minimum of 60 days to lessen the risk of any pathogens that may be present, per the FDA.
Samples that test positive for viable virus will be “evaluated on a case-by-case basis,” the FDA said, and the agency may issue actions “such as a recall, follow-up inspection or other possible responses to protect public health.”
The FDA has previously warned of the dangers of drinking raw milk, which does not undergo pasteurization — a process that kills viruses and bacteria. The agency currently considers unpasteurized soft and hard cheeses, as well as other products made from unpasteurized milk, a “high-risk choice.”
Past studies from federal health officials have shown that pasteurization effectively kills the bird flu virus. Nearly all, or 99%, of the commercial milk supply produced on dairy farms in the U.S. follows a national pasteurization program.
Pasteurization has been a practice in the U.S. for more than 100 years and kills harmful bacteria and viruses by heating milk to a specific temperature over time, the FDA notes.
The U.S. has been facing an outbreak of bird flu, or avian influenza, since April, when the first human case was reported.
Almost all confirmed cases have had direct contact with infected cattle or infected livestock. Most bird flu cases in the U.S. have been mild, and patients have typically recovered after receiving antiviral medication.
Hum Images/Universal Images Group via Getty Images
(NEW YORK) — As world leaders mourn the death of former President Jimmy Carter and remark on his political and policy legacy, doctors are remembering his efforts to prevent disease, and his legacy in furthering global public health.
The 39th president spent five decades working to eradicate a parasitic disease, helped organize a major-drug donation program, and made advancements addressing the mental health crisis in the U.S.
Dr. Julie Jacobson, currently a managing partner of the nonprofit Bridges to Development, helped to provide funding for the Carter Center’s work in the Americas, Nigeria and Ethiopia while she worked for the Bill & Melinda Gates Foundation for over a decade.
“He was hugely influential, I think particularly for the diseases that most of the world doesn’t appreciate even exist,” Jacobson told ABC News of Jimmy Carter’s work. “He was a true champion for the neglected tropical diseases, which are some of the most common infections of people who live with the least resources. And he found these diseases and then really wanted to do something about them, and used his voice, his influence, his passion, to continue to push forward where others were really not interested.”
Near-eradication of Guinea worm disease
Following his loss to Ronald Reagan in the 1980 presidential election, Carter founded the Carter Center in 1982, a non-profit organization that “seeks to prevent and resolve conflicts, enhance freedom and democracy, and improve health,” according to the Center’s website.
Among the organization’s many efforts, the Carter Center helped spearhead a successful international campaign with the goal of eradicating dracunculiasis, also known as Guinea worm disease, a parasitic infection caused by consuming contaminated drinking water.
Water from ponds or other stagnant bodies of water can contain tiny crustaceans commonly known as water fleas, which in turn can be infected with Guinea worm larvae, according to the Centers for Disease Control and Prevention (CDC).
About one year after infecting a human host, the Guinea worm creates a blister on the skin and emerges from it, which can cause burning pain, fever and swelling, according to the CDC and the World Health Organization.
“Nobody else wanted to take it on,” Jimmy Carter told ABC News’ George Stephanopoulos during a 2015 interview on “Good Morning America”. “So, I decided to take it on.”
In 1986, Guinea worm disease afflicted 3.5 million people every year in 21 African and Asian countries. Disease incidence has since been reduced by 99.99%, to just 14 “provisional” human cases in 2023, according to the Carter Center.
Jacobson said that success is even more remarkable because there are no vaccines available to prevent Guinea worm disease and no drugs to treat it. Tracking Guinea worm disease, according to Jacobson, involves following possible cases for a year to determine if they are infected, checking to see if infected humans have any infected water sources near them, and monitoring the community as a whole.
“To think that you could eradicate a disease without any tools is really still just a crazy idea, but he did it with perseverance and working with people in the grassroots within communities and putting together teams of people to go and work with people in those communities and empower the communities,” Jacobson said.
The Carter Center says if efforts are successful, Guinea worm disease could become the second human disease in history to be completely eradicated, after smallpox, and the first to be done without the use of a vaccine or medicine.
Carter told ABC News during the 2015 interview that eradicating the disease entirely was his goal: “I think this is going to be a great achievement for, not for me, but for the people that have been afflicted and for the entire world to see diseases like this eradicated.”
Mass drug distribution for river blindness
The Carter Center also works to fight other preventable diseases, including the parasitic infections schistosomiasis and lymphatic filariasis – more commonly known as snail fever and elephantiasis, respectively – as well as trachoma, which is one of the world’s leading causes of preventable blindness. It’s also working with the governments of Haiti and the Dominican Republic to eliminate lymphatic filariasis and malaria from the island of Hispaniola, which both countries share and which is “the last reservoir in the Caribbean for both diseases,” according to the Carter Center.
Carter and his organization also played a part in organizing a major drug-donation program to help eliminate onchocerciasis, also known as river blindness, which is transmitted to human through repeated bites of infected blackflies, according to the CDC.
Pharmaceutical company Merck & Co. had been implementing field studies in Africa which showed that the drug ivermectin was effective at treating river blindness in humans. The Carter Center partnered with Merck to mass-distribute ivermectin, brand name Mectizan, “as much as needed for as long as needed” in Africa and Latin America. To date, the Carter Center has assisted in distributing more than 500 million treatments of Mectizan, according to Merck.
In 1995, Carter negotiated a two-month cease-fire in Sudan to allow health care workers there to more safely help eradicate Guinea worm disease, prevent river blindness, and vaccinate children against polio.
“When we have known solutions, it is ethical to make sure they’re available to the people who need it most,” Dr. Usha Ramakrishnan, chair of the Department of Global Health at Emory University’s Rollins School of Public Health, told ABC News. “And that’s where we were with river blindness. There was a treatment, but improving access to medications, making it affordable, reaching the people they need was very much along the lines of the work [the Carter Center] was doing.”
Addressing mental health
Carter was also committed to tackling mental health issues. During his presidency, he created the Presidential Commission on Mental Health, which recommended a national plan to care for people with chronic mental illness.
Although it was never adopted as policy by the Reagan administration, the plan’s recommended strategies were adopted by some mental health advocacy groups to “make gains in the 1980s,” according to one study.
Carter also signed into law the Mental Health Systems Act of 1980, which provided funding to community mental health centers.
After his presidency, Carter and former first lady Rosalynn Carter continued working to improve access to mental health.
Ramakrishnan said the Carters’ work helped to reduce some of the stigma associated with mental health.
“There continues to be a lot of stigma, but they truly got it out [in] the conversation and mainstreaming mental health as an important aspect of health and well-being,” Ramakrishnan said. “There’s still a lot of challenges, and there are many capable people that they have mentored and trained who are carrying that mantle forward.”
(NEW YORK) — Respiratory illness activity – a measure of how often conditions like the common cold, flu, COVID-19, and respiratory syncytial virus are diagnosed – is currently “high” in the United States, according to an update from the Centers for Disease Control and Prevention.
Currently, New Hampshire is listed as having “very high” respiratory virus activity, and 11 states – Arizona, Delaware, Georgia, Idaho, Kansas, Kentucky, Louisiana, Oklahoma, Tennessee, Texas and Wisconsin – are listed as having “high” activity, CDC data shows.
Meanwhile, 29 states are listed as having “moderate” activity, and the remaining states are listed as having “low” activity.
Particularly, COVID-19, seasonal flu and RSV activity are increasing across the country with a rising number of people visiting emergency departments and the number of tests coming back positive for one of the three conditions, the CDC said.
The CDC estimates that there have been at least 3.1 million illnesses, 37,000 hospitalizations and 1,500 deaths from flu so far this season; these figures are based on the latest date for which data is available, which is the week ending Dec. 21.
Five pediatric deaths were reported during the week of Dec. 21, bringing the total number to nine so far during the 2024-25 season.
The CDC says levels of the COVID-19 virus being detected in wastewater are increasing, as are the number of emergency department visits and laboratory test positivity rates.
“Based on CDC modeled estimates of epidemic growth, we predict COVID-19 illness will continue to increase in the coming weeks as it usually does in the winter,” the CDC said in a statement.
For RSV, the CDC said emergency department visits and hospitalizations are increasing among children and hospitalizations are increasing among older adults in some areas.
Flu and COVID-19 vaccines are available for both children and adults, and RSV vaccines are available for certain groups of adults. However, vaccination coverage remains low, meaning “many children and adults lack protection from respiratory virus infections provided by vaccines,” according to the CDC.
As of Dec. 21, only 41.9% of adults were vaccinated against the flu and 21.4% were vaccinated with the updated 2024-25 COVID-19 vaccine. Additionally, just 43.7% of adults ages 75 and older have received the RSV vaccine, according to CDC data.
Nearly half of all children are vaccinated against the flu at 42.5%, but just 10.3% have received the updated COVID-19 vaccine.
More than 90 norovirus outbreaks were reported during the week of Dec. 5, the most recent week for which data is available, according to the CDC.
CDC data from previous years for the same December week show a maximum of 65 outbreaks reported.
National CDC data reflects what has been reported in state and counties across the country.
In Minnesota, more than 40 outbreaks were reported in December, almost twice the usual number, according to the state Department of Health.
Earlier this month, an event celebrating the top restaurants in Los Angeles left at least 80 people sickened with norovirus, which was linked to raw oysters, the county’s Department of Public Health confirmed to ABC News.
Norovirus is a highly contagious virus that is the most common cause of viral gastroenteritis, which is an inflammation of the inside lining of the gastrointestinal tract.
Although it’s often referred to as the “stomach bug” or “stomach flu,” norovirus illness is not related to influenza.
The most common symptoms are nausea, vomiting, stomach pain and diarrhea. Patients, however, can also experience fever, headaches and body aches.
According to the federal health agency, every year the virus causes between 19 and 21 million illnesses, 109,000 hospitalizations and 900 deaths.
A person can become infected by having direct contact with someone who is infected and sharing food or utensils with them; touching surfaces or objects contaminated with norovirus and then touching their face or mouth; or consuming contaminated foods or liquids.
Typically, an infected person will develop symptoms between 12 to 48 hours after being infected. However, norovirus typically resolves quickly and, in most healthy adults, lasts one to three days, according to the CDC.
There is no specific medication or antiviral for norovirus, meaning the only treatment available is managing symptoms.
The CDC recommends staying hydrated and drinking liquids that replenish electrolytes, which can be depleted through diarrhea and vomiting.
Although symptoms will resolve in a few days for most people, certain groups are at high risk for severe dehydration including those under age 1, the elderly and the immunocompromised.
Health experts say the best way to prevent getting norovirus is to wash hands with warm soap and water for 20 seconds. Hand sanitizer does not work well against norovirus.
The CDC says people should wash their hands after using the toilet or changing diapers as well as when eating, preparing or handling food.
To prevent contamination from food, make sure fruits and vegetables are washed, and that shellfish is cooked to at least an internal temperature of 145 F.
(NEW YORK) — Three states — Louisiana, Kentucky and New Hampshire — are reporting high levels of respiratory illness, including common cold, flu, RSV and COVID, according to the CDC. In addition, children under four are currently experiencing the highest levels of RSV hospitalizations.
Dr. Neil C. Bhavsar, an emergency medicine resident at New York-Presbyterian Hospital and a member of the ABC News Medical Unit, said that those illnesses come out “roaring” at this time of year because people are staying indoors, coming from all over and spending time with family.
He wants people to know the severity of their illness and where to go so it’s best treated, he said.
“Urgent Care is a quick fix,” Bhavsar said. Typically, it’s best for non-life-threatening conditions that are addressed within 30 minutes to a few hours.
“The ER or the emergency department is for serious injuries, life-threatening illness or something that can become very serious,” he said.
He explains that respiratory illnesses may take a few days to figure out.
“When we’re talking about respiratory illnesses, I would say, if you’re not feeling too well for like two to three days, have a low grade fever, a cough that’s been lingering for a little bit longer than you want, some facial pressure, sinus pressure, congestion, urgent care is your friend,” Bhavsar said.
But he warns that if “your fingertips are blue, your lips are blue, you’re feeling short of breath and you have chest pain” to go to the emergency department. Any child with these symptoms, especially trouble breathing, should be evaluated in an emergency room.
For upper respiratory illnesses, Bhavsar urges people to stay hydrated.
“Drink warm fluids, soup, broths, hot teas, you can try a nasal spray for congestion and honey is a big thing we’ve been doing for a sore throat or a cough,” Bhavsar said. But he warns honey should never be given to infants or anyone less than a year old due to the risk of a severe illness called botulism.
He also recommends steam inhalation and over-the-counter decongestants for respiratory illnesses, but these should not be used for more than 3-5 days in a row.
In addition, Bhavsar said ibuprofen or acetaminophen can help with body aches and chills. Always follow dosing instructions, ages for use, and consult with a physician if uncertain on how to take any these medications.
