NC flu deaths reach 176 as respiratory illness cases continue downward trend

Ashley Anderson
·2 min read

RALEIGH, N.C. (WNCN) — In the past week, the NC Department of Health and Human Services said the state continued to see a decrease among hospital and emergency department admissions for patients with the flu, RSV and COVID.

FLU DEATHS IN NC

From Jan. 14-20, an additional seven flu-related deaths have been reported, bringing the state’s total to 176 since mid-October. All seven of the deaths in the past week were reported in adults. However, seven pediatric deaths have also been reported from November through early January.

In a breakdown of flu deaths by age, 109 flu deaths have been reported in patients age 65 and older. That represents just above 61% of all NC flue deaths so far this season.

Of the remaining 67 deaths:

  • 43 have been in adults age 50-64

  • 17 have been in adults age 25-49

  • Four have been in the age group of 5-17

  • Three have been in the range of 0-4

No deaths have been reported in the age group of 18-24.

RESPIRATORY VIRUS CASES

Respiratory virus numbers have seen a downward trend for the third straight week on the NCDHHS respiratory virus dashboard.

In the past week, emergency department visits for respiratory viruses were down 2.5%.

Additionally, hospital admissions were down for COVID-19—totaling 717 compared to 899 the week before. For the flu, it’s the same story—308 admissions were reported in the past week compared to 504 the week prior.

EMERGENCY DEPARTMENT VISITS FOR RESPIRATORY VIRUSES

HOSPITAL ADMISSIONS

COVID-19 WASTEWATER MONITORING

An average of 64.6 million COVID-19 particles per person were found in wastewater samples across the state in the past week. That represents a decrease from the week before, which found 78.3 million.

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