Flu "gathering speed" across US as health officials and doctors prepare for a potentially rough season

US health officials are becoming increasingly concerned about this year’s flu season – and are already seeing signs that the virus is spreading.   Flu activity in the United States often starts to increase in October and usually peaks between December and February. As the 2022-23 flu season gets underway, one high school in California has faced a “high number of absences” among students due to possible flu cases.   San Diego County Public Health Services said one high school had nearly 4,000 students absent over two days due to cold- and flu-like symptoms.   An early increase in seasonal flu activity has been reported in most of the United States, with the nation’s Southeast and South Central areas reporting the highest levels, according to the CDC. More than a thousand people were  hospitalized with flu last week, the agency said.   Although current influenza activity is still overall low, the CDC’s report finds that its increasing in most of the country, with three jurisdictions experiencing moderate activity and six jurisdictions experiencing high or very high activity.   Last week, the CDC found that 3.3% of respiratory specimens sent to labs tested positive for flu, suggesting that the nation might be returning to pre-Covid levels. Around this time in 2019, 3.1% of specimens were reported as testing positive for flu. But levels plummeted in 2020 and 2021, largely thanks to coronavirus prevention measures like masks and distancing.   Predicting what influenza activity might look like in a particular year can be tricky, but doctors are bracing for “a very substantial” flu season, said Dr. William Schaffner, a professor in the Division of Infectious Diseases at Vanderbilt University Medical Center and medical director of the National Foundation for Infectious Diseases.   “We know that this virus is now spreading out in the community already. It’s gathering speed already. It looks to me to be about a month early,” Schaffner said.   Concern has grown as officials also brace for possible surges this winter in Covid-19 and other common respiratory viruses, such as respiratory syncytial virus or RSV, a leading cause of lower respiratory tract infection in infants and young children.