NASHVILLE, Tenn. (WTVF) — Flu cases are peaking for a second time this season and the end is still a few months away. Several districts have closed this week in Middle Tennessee to clean and reset.
That includes Coffee, Dickson, Giles and Houston county school districts which have reported extensive sickness.
Numbers from the CDC this season show there's been at least 20 million cases, with an estimated 38,000+ hospitalizations last week alone.
If you've stayed healthy this far, know flu season will still be around until spring. If you are sick, there are some new tools to help this go around. That includes over-the-counter tests which help families to identify whether an illness is COVID or the flu.
Those can be purchased at any pharmacy store or online. It allows families the convenience of knowing results quickly, without having to wait to schedule an appointment or wait in line.
Experts also are urging anyone six months or older to get their flu shot if they haven't already. That can be done at any time, not just at the beginning of the season.
"These cases are staggering, but they are not unlike numbers we saw pre-pandemic.," said Dr. Rabia De Latour with NYU Langone Health. "We got a little bit spoiled after the pandemic because of precautions people were taking. What that resulted in was a little a bit of immunity gap where society as a whole is less immune, we have slightly lower vaccination rates. And so our defenses are slightly down."
Do you have more information about this story? You can email me at amelia.young@newschannel5.com.
With new technology comes new ways to help people. This story shows a great use of AI that is starting to be rolled out in Tennessee. This one can help those who may be blind, deaf or neurodiverse navigate the Tennessee State Library and Archives from an app on their smart phone.
-Lelan Statom
