This article was posted on the Detroit Free Press. Read more here.
‘Tis the season to be feverish and sniffly.
The spread of influenza-like illness has reached “very high” levels in Michigan — and in 18 other states nationally, according to the latest report from the U.S. Centers for Disease Control and Prevention. And it’s driving people to hospital emergency departments across the state.
“We have seen a sharp increase in flu activity over the past couple of weeks,” Dr. John Brooks, McLaren Health Care’s medical director of infection prevention for the 13-hospital health system based in Grand Blanc, told the Detroit Free Press.
Influenza A(H3N2) viruses are the most frequently reported influenza viruses so far this season.
At the University of Michigan Health-Sparrow Lansing, spokesperson John Foren said a surge of flu cases is flooding the hospital’s emergency room.
“At any given point, we are at capacity and have numerous patients in the emergency department waiting for an inpatient bed,” he said. “Most of the region is in the same boat. We continue to encourage people to take precautions and to consider our urgent care clinics or their primary care physician for treatment of common flu and virus symptoms in lieu of coming to the emergency department.”
At Corewell Health, Michigan’s largest health system, the number of patients being treated for flu have doubled or nearly doubled in the span of a week, said spokesperson Sarina Gleason.
“We are seeing week-over-week increases of respiratory viruses, particularly flu, in ED (emergency department) visits as well as admissions. … The increase is happening in all regions, but happening a little more rapidly” in southeastern Michigan, she said.
The spread of influenza-like illness has reached “very high” levels in Michigan — and in 18 other states nationally, according to the latest report from the U.S. Centers for Disease Control and Prevention.
“The rapid uptick has been in the second half of December and is likely to continue as it seems we are truly in the season now,” Gleason said.
At Detroit-based Henry Ford Health, 33% of tests in its labs were positive for influenza during the week of Dec. 21-27, a spokesperson told the Detroit Free Press. That’s the highest percentage of weekly positive flu tests in at least the last three seasons for the health system, which has 13 acute-care hospitals in metro Detroit, Jackson and Grand Blanc.
In the 2024-25 flu season, test positivity peaked at 31.7% across Henry Ford Health, and in 2023-24, it peaked at 16.4%.
It’s not just the number of flu cases on the rise, either.
“Cases of COVID-19 and RSV (respiratory syncytial virus) are also ticking upward,” Henry Ford said in an emailed statement. “Our lab reported that the COVID-19 positivity rate was 6.6% last week (Dec. 21-27), up from 5.3% about a month earlier (Nov. 30-Dec. 6).
The Michigan Department of Health and Human Services reported that 643 people had been hospitalized as of Dec. 13 with confirmed cases of influenza, the most recent date for which data was available. Roughly half were ages 65 and older, and about 1 in 6 were infants and children younger than 5.
So far, Influenza A (H3N2) viruses are the most common type circulating nationally, the CDC reported. The agency estimates that there have been at least 7.5 million flu illnesses, 81,000 hospitalizations, and 3,100 deaths from flu this season across the United States.
Eight children have died from influenza-related causes, the CDC reported.
How can I prevent the flu?
One of the best ways to protect yourself is to get a seasonal flu shot, said Dr. Teena Chopra, medical director of infection prevention at the Detroit Medical Center and Children’s Hospital of Michigan.
Even if the flu vaccine doesn’t completely protect you from contracting the virus, it can prevent severe illness and hospitalization if you do get sick, she said.
The Michigan Department of Health and Human Services recommends all eligible people ages 6 months and older get an annual flu shot to prevent severe complications from flu, including hospitalization.
As of Dec. 20, nearly 2.4 million Michiganders had been vaccinated for influenza for the 2025-26 season — about 24%. That’s about 1 in 4 residents, according to the Michigan Respiratory Virus Immunization Statewide Summary.
In addition, the CDC recommends:
- Avoiding close contact with people who are sick.
- Cleaning frequently touched surfaces.
- Washing your hands often with soap and water. If soap and water are not available, use an alcohol-based hand sanitizer.
- Avoiding touching your eyes, nose, and mouth.
- Improving the air quality of indoor spaces to reduce the risk of exposure to viruses by bringing in fresh outside air, purifying indoor air, or gathering outdoors.
- Wearing a mask to further protect yourself from breathing in infectious particles from people around you.
- You may be sick of hearing it, but it’s true: washing your hands well and often is paramount to staying healthy when flu and cold season arrives.
What are flu symptoms?
The CDC reports that the flu can cause mild to serious illness.
Symptoms can come on suddenly and can include:
- Fever or feeling feverish. Not everyone with influenza will have a fever.
- Chills
- Cough
- Sore throat
- Runny or stuffy nose
- Muscle or body aches
- Headaches
- Fatigue (tiredness)
- Some people may have vomiting and diarrhea, though the symptoms are more common in children than in adults.
Can flu be treated?
If you get sick with flu, antiviral drugs, such as Tamiflu, can prevent severe disease and can shorten the length of time you are sick, the CDC says. They may also prevent you from developing complications from flu, such as pneumonia.
Flu antiviral medications are available only by prescription, and work best when started within two days of when your flu symptoms begin.