Flu activity continues to climb in US with at least 15 million cases: CDC

(NEW YORK) — A federal appeals court is deciding whether to revive more than 500 lawsuits filed by parents who claimed their children’s autism or attention deficit hyperactivity disorder (ADHD) was caused by prenatal exposure to Tylenol.

The lawsuits were dismissed in December 2023 by U.S. District Judge Denise Cote after finding that the plaintiffs’ scientific experts did not provide credible evidence linking use of Tylenol, or its active ingredient acetaminophen, to autism or ADHD.

Cote wrote in her ruling that “the unstructured approach adopted by the plaintiffs’ experts permitted cherry-picking, allowed a results-driven analysis, and obscured the complexities, inconsistencies, and weaknesses in the underlying data.”

However, in a hearing this week, two judges of a three-judge panel on the U.S. Court of Appeals for the Second Circuit in Manhattan suggested some of the experts’ testimony may have been admissible and that the lawsuits were prematurely dismissed.

“I’m having trouble understanding why the district court was correct to say that this just is nonsense. This is something that no one should hear,” Circuit Judge Gerard Lynch said during the hearing earlier this week. “It just goes out the window, when it seems to me that you have a reputable scientist explaining why each of these judgment calls was made.”

Meanwhile, Circuit Judge Guido Calabresi implied that the cases could have gone to a jury.

“It seems to me you’re constantly coming back to where you began, which is [the experts] didn’t show that there was a causal link, but a causal link cannot be shown,” Calabresi said. “All that matters is if people bring in evidence, so that then juries or courts may say, ‘This goes one way or the other.'”

The topic has been in the headlines since the Trump administration announced in September that the use of Tylenol during pregnancy may be linked to an increased risk of autism and that pregnant women should limit their use, contradicting medical evidence.

Studies on this question have not shown a direct cause and effect. Some studies point to a possible link, but major medical groups, including the American Academy of Pediatrics and the American College of Obstetricians and Gynecologists, have evaluated the evidence and continue to recommend acetaminophen as the safest pain reliever during pregnancy in consultation with your OB-GYN.

At the time of Trump’s announcement, federal officials cited an August 2025 meta-analysis from researchers at Mt. Sinai, Harvard T.H. Chan School of Public Heath, UCLA Fielding School of Public Health and UMass Lowell that found prenatal exposure to acetaminophen may be associated with an increase in rates of neurodevelopmental disorders, including autism and ADHD, in children.

However, an April 2024 study, funded by the National Institutes of Health (NIH) and published in JAMA, found that using acetaminophen during pregnancy was not linked to an increased risk of autism, ADHD or intellectual disability in children.

Additionally, a review published earlier this month in the BMJ similarly found no clear evidence of a link between acetaminophen use in pregnancy and autism or ADHD in children.

Last month, Texas Attorney General Ken Paxton sued the makers of Tylenol –Johnson & Johnson and Kenvue — claiming that they deceptively marketed the over-the-counter medication to pregnant women despite alleged links to autism and other disorders.

Johnson & Johnson sold the drug for decades and its consumer health division spinoff, Kenvue Inc., has been selling the drug since 2023.  Multinational consumer goods and personal care corporation Kimberly Clark recently announced plans to acquire Kenvue.

Kenvue has defended against claims that its products, or its active ingredient, is linked to autism.

In a statement to ABC News in September, the company said it believes research shows that acetaminophen does not cause autism.

“We strongly disagree with any suggestion otherwise and are deeply concerned with the health risk this poses for expecting mothers,” the statement read. “Acetaminophen is the safest pain reliever option for pregnant women as needed throughout their entire pregnancy. Without it, women face dangerous choices: suffer through conditions like fever that are potentially harmful to both mom and baby or use riskier alternatives.”

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(NEW YORK) — New York is reporting the highest number of flu hospitalizations recorded in a single week, the state’s health department said on Friday.

During the week ending Dec. 27, 4,546 people were hospitalized with flu, a 24% increase from the 3,666 who were hospitalized the previous week, according to data from the New York State Department of Health (NYSOH)

It comes after the state reported a record-breaking number of flu cases in a single week with 72,133 infections during the week ending Dec. 20.

NYSDOH issued a declaration last month stating influenza is prevalent in New York, which requires health care facilities and agencies to ensure any staff who have not received this year’s flu vaccine wear masks in any areas where patients and residents may be present.

“We are having a more severe flu season than prior years, almost 1,000 more people were admitted to a hospital during this most recent seven-day period compared to the prior week,” Dr. James McDonald, the state’s health commissioner, said in a statement on Friday.

Meanwhile, flu activity is also spiking nationwide. The Centers for Disease Control and Prevention estimates there have been at least ​7.5 million illnesses, ​81,000 hospitalizations and ​3,100 deaths from flu so far this season.

New York is one of 20 states recording “very high” levels of respiratory illness activity, according to the latest CDC data.

Public health experts previously told ABC News that many of this season’s cases are linked to a new flu strain called subclade K — a variant of the H3N2 virus, which is itself a subtype of influenza A.

Subclade K has been circulating since the summer in other countries and was a main driver of a spike in flu cases in Canada, Japan and the U.K.

Of the 1,600 flu samples tested by the CDC, roughly ​92% were H3N2. Of those samples, nearly ​90% belonged to subclade K.

Experts expect flu-like illnesses to continue to climb in the coming weeks after holiday gatherings and colder weather.

Currently, the CDC recommends that everyone aged 6 months and older, with rare exceptions, get a flu vaccine.  

The federal health agency states on its website that getting an annual flu shot prevents millions of illnesses and flu-related doctors’ visits every year and is especially important for those at higher risk of serious complications.

The flu vaccine is currently available to New Yorkers aged 2 years and older at a health care provider’s office or at participating pharmacies while children aged 6 months and older can receive the flu vaccine at a health care provider’s office, according to the state health department.

“There is still time to get a flu shot and remember, flu can be treated with antiviral medication if started within 48 hours of symptom onset and your doctor deems appropriate,” McDonald said.

ABC News’ Youri Benadjaoud contributed to this report.

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(WASHINGTON) — Cases of norovirus are rising across the United States, doubling over the last few months, according to updated data from the Centers for Disease Control and Prevention (CDC).

Nearly 14% of tests came back positive for norovirus during the most recent week ending Nov. 15, compared to roughly 7% about three months ago.

Test positivity is a metric used to identify how many people are confirmed to have norovirus after an illness is suspected.

Health experts have said that, like other measurements, test positivity is imperfect as it depends on the number of tests that are ordered, which can vary.

Last December saw a record-breaking rate of norovirus cases in the U.S. with nearly 25% of tests coming back positive. Cases had been trending down since then but have begun to rise in recent weeks, CDC data shows.

Electronic health records data from Epic Research show that Alabama, Nebraska, Oklahoma, Texas and Wyoming are some of the states currently experiencing the highest number of norovirus cases. Emergency department visits have been on the rise since July, Epic Research data shows. 

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.

Norovirus is the leading cause of foodborne illness in the U.S., causing 58% of foodborne illnesses each year, and responsible for about 2,5000 outbreaks annually, according to the CDC.

The most common symptoms are nausea, vomiting, stomach pain and diarrhea. Patients, however, can also experience fever, headaches and body aches.

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.

Health experts say the best way to prevent getting norovirus is to wash hands with warm soap and water for 20 seconds. Hand sanitizer alone 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.

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