Avoiding 'Flurona' In Detroit: How To Prevent Coinfection

Detroit MI

07 January, 2022

9:15 AM

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DETROIT — Health officials have long questioned the potential impact of the flu coinciding with COVID-19. Now, they may get their answer after Israel reported that two young pregnant women had tested positive for both the coronavirus and the flu. A Texas Children's Hospital also confirmed earlier this week that a child was infected with both viruses. No other details were given, but health officials expect to see more "flurona" cases as the flu and coronavirus spreads. As COVID-19, particularly the omicron variant spreads throughout the metro Detroit region, flu activity has remained low in the state. But state health officials did report an uptick in flu cases in December. Is Flurona Illness Any Worse Than COVID-19? While it's unknown whether being infected with both the flu and COVID-19 at the same time causes a more severe illness than COVID-19, some health officials are worried that it can. Dr. Partha Nandi told WXYZ he's concerned the double infection could lead to a more serious infection. "So doctors – myself included - are concerned that having both of these respiratory illnesses simultaneously could possibly lead to even more severe illness," Partha told WXYZ. "While we don't have a lot of data on this particular co-infection, it could be quite hard on a person's immune system, especially those who are elderly or immunocompromised." Where Cases Have Been Confirmed While Israel was the first country to confirm a "Flurona" case on Sunday, there have been cases detected here in the United States. ABC News in South Florida said health officials are seeing kids entering the ER with the flu and COVID-19. However, Dr. Juan Dumois, a pediatric infectious diseases physician at Johns Hopkins All Children's Hospital told the news station that the presence of multiple diseases in young people is something he has seen before. There was also a Houston teenager who contracted the flu and COVID-19 at the same time, ABC News in Houston reported Tuesday. The teen told the news station he was vaccinated against COVID-19 but not the flu. How prevalent is the flu this winter? While COVID-19 rapidly spreads across Michigan, mainly due to the omicron variant, flu activity in Michigan has remained minimal, according to health officials. However, Michigan's flu season peak is typically seen in January and February, and respiratory illnesses with flu-like symptoms are tracking at levels much more comparable to pre-pandemic years across the country as a whole, the CDC said. Health care professionals told CBS News Detroit the best defense is the vaccine, in addition to wearing masks and social distancing, which they said helped keep flu activity minimal during last year's flu season. "Every year we get the annual Flu shot and it is still important this year, especially when we know that we have a very super-infectious variant circulating and we don't want to get co-infections with Flu and with Omicron," Wayne State University Professor of Infectious Disease Dr. Teena Chopra told the news station.