Experts expect the New Jersey flu, respiratory syncytial virus and mild coronavirus infections to be as high this year as they were last year. (Shutterstock)
[The Epoch Times, September 01, 2023](Reported by Epoch Times reporter Li Allen) Last fall, influenza, respiratory syncytial virus (RSV) and mild coronavirus (COVID) formed a “triple epidemic” in New Jersey, causing Childhood illnesses and shortages of essential medicines. Now that schools are about to start, doctors and public health officials say the region could be headed for another tough cold and flu season. Experts expect this year’s incidence to be as high as last year’s. This year, however, parents have more options, with new medications and vaccines that can help prevent the worst symptoms from appearing. But for the youngest children, the procedure may require as many as three injections.
New vaccine to treat RSV
Of all the respiratory diseases affecting young children, none is more common than RSV. Its effects range from mild cold-like symptoms to serious lung conditions such as bronchitis or pneumonia. Regulators recently approved a new drug, Beyfortus, a novel monoclonal antibody that, like a vaccine, has been shown in clinical trials to prevent lower respiratory tract disease in infants and children during RSV’s initial season or onset.
early flu season
With the end of the CCP virus-related tasks (wearing masks and social distancing), last year (2022) was the first normal school year facing the “back to normal” movement in New Jersey, and the flu spread faster and earlier. Four children in New Jersey died from the flu last quarter, after no deaths in the previous two quarters. And children began to catch the flu in late August, with peak transmission from November to December, rather than the usual January to early March. The early outbreak of the flu has led to severe shortages of children’s medicines and pain relievers as parents start buying them in early fall.
Over-the-counter cough, cold and flu remedies are in good supply for the upcoming flu season, spokespeople for several major pharmacy chains, including CVS and Walgreens, said yesterday. Public health experts believe that the flu season will return to a more normal pattern of strikes in October and November. The flu shot will start rolling out in September, but doctors recommend starting in mid-to-late October to last through the season. The state Department of Health said it would monitor any reports of drug shortages, while noting that the best preventive measures for “drug” shortages are practicing basic hygiene to slow the spread of the virus, including washing hands and getting an annual flu shot.
New variant of CCP virus
A new variant of the CCP virus, also known as “Eris”, is an EG.5 subvariant of Omicron, which has caused a rise in cases across the United States and New Jersey. But so far, the number of cases on ventilators, admissions to intensive care units and other serious symptoms remains rare. Across the outbreak, children have been less severely affected than adults. Children under the age of 18 have accounted for less than 10% of all new cases since May, according to the Ministry of Health. A new vaccine against the Omicron subvariant may be available this fall. Experts say the coronavirus vaccine and the flu shot could be given to children at the same time. ◇
Responsible Editor: Ye Chen
2023-09-01 15:28:50
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