Influenza is sending many people to emergency rooms across not only Chicago but the entire country. 

Officials from the federal Centers for Disease Control and Prevention said that flu cases have declined recently but still pose a threat. Cook County officials also say the flu cases have dropped from “high” to “moderate” levels. 

The CDC estimates so far there have been at least 18,000,000 flu cases, leading to  230,000 hospitalizations and 9,300 deaths.

Andrew Dahlem, a primary care physician at One Medical Primary Care Clinic in Skokie, said hospitalizations for the flu are at their highest levels in three years in Chicago, and the virus will continue to infect more people. 

“We have had a really bad season of flu already in Chicago,” Dahlem said. 

Aysha Malik, a junior at DePaul majoring in biological science, said that even though her family was vaccinated, four of her family members got the flu in December and progressively started feeling worse. 

“They started having a headache, a high fever of 103 to 104,” Malik said. “Afterwards, they felt like throwing up.”

Her family visited the doctor, including urgent care, to get checked. At urgent care her family tested positive for influenza A, which is more severe than influenza B.  

Similarly, Hafsa Feroz, a student from DePaul, said that the flu symptoms recently sent two of her family members to the emergency room. 

She noted that over-the-counter medication and drinking lots of liquids helped. Her family chose turmeric milk. 

“My dad would drink gallons of that,” Feroz said. “He got better eventually, with a lot of rest, of course.” 

While staying hydrated can help ease some symptoms, Dahlem said understanding the type of influenza a patient has can be helpful to determine how severe the disease might become.  

Dahlem explained that influenza A is typically responsible for more flu variants, which makes it more concerning. If the variants are not included in vaccines, protection against the virus is significantly reduced.  

Despite this, Dahlem still recommends receiving the flu shot, especially for the elderly and young children. The CDC recently lowered the recommendation status of several vaccines for children, including the seasonal flu shot, making a shift towards what it calls a “shared clinical decision-making” model.

Positivity rates may appear lower because individuals with severe symptoms may not believe testing is necessary. This can give the impression that flu activity is declining even when it remains high, Dahlem explained. 

“One of the things that is unique about the flu as a virus is that it doesn’t just have one symptom associated with it, because it can kind of get into any organ system,” Dahlem said. The ability to impact multiple organ systems is what makes the flu particularly dangerous.

Dahlem said the flu can infect the eyes, and in another strain it can impact the gastrointestinal tract. 

“That’s important is because GI symptoms of the flu are going to be quicker to lead to mortality because of dehydration,” he said.

According to Dahlem, flu season “has barely begun.” Though the first waves of the flu have somewhat lessened, he noted that flu season runs at least through April.  

“If you are sick, don’t give it to everybody else,” Dahlem said, “and on the flip side, don’t live in paralyzed fear of getting a virus from everybody.”

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