After early peak, flu season leveling off in Sedgwick County, health department reports

While flu season in Sedgwick County has likely reached its peak, the number of cases still sit higher than they have in previous years.

“We’re still twice as high as we were last year,” Adrienne Byrne, Sedgwick County Health Department director, said Wednesday. “It is good news that it has peaked, which means it has hit its highest points, and seems to have been decreasing since late November. But we still have plenty of flu in Wichita and Sedgwick County.”

Influenza cases typically do not get reported to health officials but emergency hospital visits for the flu do.

According to the Kansas Department of Health and Environment’s dashboard, the latest data from the week of Jan. 1 to 7 show 1.5% of emergency department visits in the county were for influenza. The highest percentage the county saw was 6.7% the week of Nov. 20 to 27.

“Our flu season this year was considered a really high flu season and the highest we have had in a number of years,” Byrne said.

The U.S. Center for Disease Control and Prevention rated influenza in the state as “high” as of Jan. 6.

Nationwide, the CDC reports 74 deaths so far this season. According to the same data, about 19,000 people in the U.S. were admitted to the hospital with influenza this week.

Protecting yourself against the annual flu

The flu is not the only virus making its way through Sedgwick County. Byrne said respiratory syncytial virus, or RSV, and COVID-19 are also a concern.

According to the KDHE dashboard, data from Jan. 7 show 18.3% of emergency visits in the county were for acute respiratory illnesses.

Here are some tips to help prevent respiratory illness:

• Wash your hands
• Wear a mask when necessary
• Stay away from groups as much as possible
• Get the flu shot

If you think you might have the flu, Byrne suggests reaching out to your medical provider to see if you’re eligible for antiviral treatment.

“An antiviral, if someone does have the flu, can definitely reduce the severity,” Byrne said.

Lindsay Smith

The Wichita Eagle

Lindsay Smith is a suburban news reporter for the Wichita Eagle, covering the communities of Andover, Bel Aire, Derby, Haysville and Kechi. She has been on The Eagle staff since 2022 and was the service journalism reporter for three years. She has a degree in communications with an emphasis in journalism from Wichita State, where she was editor-in-chief of the student newspaper, The Sunflower, for two years. You can reach her via email at lsmith@wichitaeagle.com.