Philadelphia Influenza Surveillance Updates:

PDPH tracks influenza activity in Philadelphia, especially severe influenza disease. Providers should report all hospitalized influenza cases, influenza deaths in children, and influenza outbreaks in closed settings like long-term care facilities and shelters.

Week 10: Febrile/flu-like illnesses have trended higher for children 5-17 years since the start of the school year, while visits for children 0-4 years remain flat and visits for adults are now below normal. Only five specimens were reported as positive for influenza A or B from our 6 sentinel hospital laboratories for week 45. Since Oct 3, 2021, there have been 3 reports of severe influenza (Philadelphia resident, positive by rapid test, PCR or culture, and hospitalized for ≥ 24 hrs). Zero influenza outbreaks were reported (≥ 1 case of laboratory confirmed flu reported in a long term care facility). No influenza-associated deaths have been reported thus far.

Current Report: Click here to download the last weekly report of influenza activity (from November 7, 2021 through November 13, 2021) in a printable format.

State and National Influenza Surveillance Updates:

Pennsylvania: As of November 13, 2021, the Pennsylvania Department of Health (PADOH) reported significant increases in flu activity this week, though overall activity remains low. There have been 1,076 laboratory confirmed cases of influenza (positive by rapid test, PCR, or culture) reported so far this season, with influenza A as the predominant type. There have been confirmed reports from 52 out of 67 counties. One death has been reported so far this season. For more information, please visit: https://www.health.pa.gov/topics/disease/Flu/Pages/2021-22-Flu.aspx.

United States: As of November 13, 2021, the CDC reports that seasonal influenza activity remained low, but that influenza positive reports from clinical and public health laboratories have increased in recent weeks, along with visits for influenza-like illness. In week 45, clinical laboratories reported 257 specimens (0.7%) of 38,685 specimens tested positive for influenza. The majority of virus detections have been influenza A, and have been predominately detected from children and young adults. Most jurisdictions reported minimal levels of flu activity, while one jurisdiction had moderate activity and one jurisdiction had high activity. For more information, please visit:: https://www.cdc.gov/flu/weekly/index.htm.