Why you should care about alphabet soup

WI COVID deaths in last week: 10

November 17, 2022

Dear Friends:

Thank you to everyone who participated in last week's survey on how to broaden the coverage of this newsletter. We'll do just that in a moment, but first, I thought I'd let you know that you can still participate in a little more in-depth version of the survey (HINT HINT). And it only seems fair to share the results so far with you:

Data chart showing results of survey taken last week. Leading: Health Equity. Second place: More about COVID. Third place: Learning about public health.

You can see that health equity, COVID and understanding public health are the leading categories, and we will get to all of those in time. Today, however, I want to look at one of the less-popular choices: other communicable diseases. Let's talk about COVID, RSV, and ILI, the alphabets in our viral soup.

I've mentioned RSV and flu in recent weeks, and there's a reason for that. COVID seems be on a plateau in the US at the moment, though experts think we're still in for some kind of wave.

Meanwhile, Respiratory Syncytial Virus, or RSV or the "super-cold" has shown an alarming increase:

Chart of RSV hospitalizations in the US, showing an alarming increase in recent weeks.

As Katelyn Jetelina notes, the future course of RSV this year is a bit unclear. It's arrived earlier than it usually does, and is shooting up faster than it usually does. Jetelina says there are "hints that RSV is peaking," but at the same time, we're not past the big family gatherings of Thanksgiving.

RSV is still a concern, however. For one thing, it puts tremendous pressure on pediatric hospital beds, at a time when those beds are in short supply. And while we may be gearing up for another COVID wave and passing through RSV, there's yet another one brewing for Influenza-Like Illnesses, a catchall term for a number of different respiratory diseases:

Chart of outpatient visits for Influenza-Like Illnesses in the US, with a dramatic rise in recent weeks.

Like RSV, ILIs are shooting up faster earlier than we'd normally anticipate. The wave hasn't hit Wisconsin yet, but hospitalization rates are high, and vaccination rates low. Sadly, there have already been five pediatric deaths from flu this season.

So while we don't want to be alarmist about the possibility of a "tripledemic," there's reason to take these illnesses seriously. We don't want to overload hospital systems, especially with pediatric patients, who can't be adequately cared for in an adult bed. We don't want to spread RSV, ILI or COVID to vulnerable individuals (young children and older adults), especially since it's possible to have more than one of them at a time.

Nor do we want to repeat the mistakes of the past. It gets tiresome to hear it again and again, but the same techniques that limit the spread of COVID work on RSV and ILI too:

Get vaccinated. Only 23% of Wisconsin residents have gotten a flu vaccine this year, and less than 15% are up to date with COVID boosters. It's quick, it's easy, it's a simple way to reduce your symptoms and stay out of the hospital. You can find out where to get your shots at vaccine.gov, and you might even be able to get both at the same time (I did).

If you're feeling sick, get tested. According to Wisconsin DHS, Wisconsinites "can still order free COVID-19 rapid tests and access testing at many community locations across the state."

If you're feeling sick, stay home. That's what Zoom church is for, and you can always reschedule Aunt Gladys' Thanksgiving cranberry relish.

Wear a mask in crowded locations, including church and family gatherings. Check the COVID risk in your area before deciding on any big gatherings.

Wash your hands and cover your coughs. It's what we teach the kids, and adults should do it too.

To wrap things up, here are some resources to help you avoid the alphabet soup this winter.

WI-DHS has a weekly respiratory virus surveillance report. You can read the latest edition online, or sign up to get a weekly email. We'll be reading it regularly and keeping you posted as appropriate.

How do I know if we have RSV, the flu, or COVID-19? Our friends at Those Nerdy Girls have some answers.

Last but not least, I've included a couple of infographics on preventing RSV and the flu below. You'll see there's a good bit of overlap in the recommendations. Feel free to distribute as you see fit.

Finally finally, a program note: I'm out of the office next week. The CHP newsletter will be stuffing itself full of turkey and mashed potatoes (I prefer ham and my mother's dinner rolls) and taking a little time off as well. We'll see you the week of November 28th!

Stay safe and stay together,

Daniel Schultz

Community Health

Program Director