RICHMOND, Va. -- If you've found yourself feeling under the weather lately, it turns out you're far from alone.
The Richmond and Henrico Health Districts (RHHD) say we're beginning to see a rise of flu and COVID cases across Central Virginia.
"Influenza or flu in particular, is really on the increase now," said Dr. Elaine Perry, RHHD's director.
According to Perry, the state has still not hit our peak of flu cases this year. They’ve risen for 6 straight weeks.
But some good news, COVID hospitalizations are actually lower than we saw last January and the following.
There is still a burden on hospitals though, as Dr. Perry notes wait times in emergency rooms are longer, which is why RHHD is really emphasizing that people stay home when they aren't feeling well.
Unfortunately, if you do test positive for the flu or COVID and don’t seek treatment immediately, doctors may not be able to truly treat your symptoms.
"If you're going to take an antiviral, so a medicine that would help treat those, they have to be done very, very early after symptom onset, you know, within a couple of days, for the most part for the best effect," Perry noted. "So if you miss that window of opportunity, which many people do, right, because you know, you start off and you may not feel as bad, and then the symptoms progress."
But while you are sick at home, Dr. Perry says if symptoms, like having trouble breathing, worsen, you need to see a doctor.
"A lot of it really is, you know, staying home making sure that you stay hydrated, making sure that you're getting rest, making sure that you're staying away from others," she said. "But if you do start to notice that you're having difficulty breathing, you know, shortness of breath, really extreme fatigue, that's when it is so important to go ahead and still reach out to your healthcare professional. Because there may be other things that can be done from a symptom perspective to help you."
At the Children’s Hospital of Richmond at VCU officials say in the pediatric intensive care unit, approximately 45 percent of patients have a respiratory illness.
That number is just a little lower in acute care pediatrics, with about 40 percent of patients experiencing some sort of virus.
A child between the ages of 5 and 12 from in Eastern Virginia became the first child in the state to die from the flu this season just about a week ago.
Across the state, vaccination rates remains low this year for both COVID and the flu.
In fact, only around 12 percent of eligible Virginians have received the updated COVID vaccine for the 2023-2024 season, and only around 30 percent of residents have gotten their flu shot.
"You do tend to see fatigue or people not as interested in addressing that," Dr. Perry explained. "And the most notable sign of that is the vaccination rates this year. So influenza vaccination rates are not that great in the general public and COVID-19 vaccination rates with the newer updated for the 23-24 COVID-19 vaccine is also very low. And so I do think people are sort of getting a little frustrated or tired. I want to emphasize, it is not too late to get either one of those shots."
When it comes to the flu, Dr. Perry explained even if you've had it this year and haven’t gotten a flu shot, it’s not too late because you could have had one type of flu but the shot covers four different kinds. That means you are still susceptible to the other three.
