Health officials reported the first two influenza deaths in Washington this season, one of whom was a woman from Snohomish County.
The woman was in her 50s, had been hospitalized and had other health conditions as well as the flu, said Heather Thomas, a spokeswoman for the Snohomish Health District. No other information on the woman’s death was immediately available.
The second death was a King County man who was more than 100 years old, said Marquise Allen, a state Health Department spokesman.
The deaths follow warnings from the federal Centers for Disease Control and Prevention earlier this month that this could be a severe year for flu. This past week, influenza was reported to be widespread in Washington.
Clinics around Snohomish County have reported an increase in flu cases.
“We’re saying that the flu season has arrived,” said Dr. Yuan-Po Tu, who tracks influenza at The Everett Clinic. The type of flu they’ve seen the most so far this year, called H3N2, tends to be more severe among the elderly and causes more hospitalizations, he said.
At Edmonds Family Medicine, there were as many suspected cases of influenza the first two weeks in December as in the entire month of November, said Marcy Shimada, the clinic’s chief executive.
Providence Regional Medical Center Everett had one case of influenza in November last year and 11 this year. There were four people treated for influenza in the first week of December.
The symptoms of influenza are fever and chills, a cough, sore throat, muscle ache, headache and fatigue. Vomiting and diarrhea are more common in children than adults.
Federal health officials say another reason for concern this year is that some viruses have mutated so they might not be affected by this season’s influenza vaccine. However, people who been vaccinated and become ill with influenza are likely to get a milder version that those who have not been vaccinated.
There’s still plenty of vaccine available for children and adults at local pharmacies, clinics and the Snohomish Health District. It takes about two weeks for the vaccine to provide its best protection against the virus.
Last year, flu killed 79 people in Washington, including seven in Snohomish County, said Paul Thorne, who works in the immunization office at the state Health Department.
Typically, flu peaks during January and February in Washington, although it is not unusual for cases to begin rapidly increasing in December.
Sharon Salyer: 425-339-3486 or salyer@heraldnet.com.
Free flu shots
Uninsured and low-income adults can get the flu vaccine free during two upcoming events in Everett:
Jan. 10: 3:30 p.m. to 5:30 p.m. at Xfinity Arena, 2000 Hewitt Ave.
Jan. 14: 10 a.m. to 2 p.m. at WorkSource Everett, 3201 Smith Ave.
For more information, call the Snohomish Health District’s immunization clinic at 425-339-5220.
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