First week without flu deaths since December
Though flu is still widespread in the state, there were no flu-associated deaths in Connecticut the week ending March 31 — the first time since December there have been no fatalities linked to the illness.
According to the state Department of Public Health, flu is past peak in Connecticut and nationwide, meaning activity has gone down. However, in many states, including Connecticut, it is still widespread, causing an elevated number of people to get sick and to be hospitalized with the contagious respiratory illness.
As of March 31, 9,495 people in Connecticut have tested positive for flu, an increase of 177 from the previous week. The state also reports that 2,839 people were hospitalized with the illness, up from 85 the week before.
So far this season, there have been 131 deaths linked to flu in the state, including three in children younger than 18. It is the highest number of flu deaths in the state in roughly five years.
Though influenza A viruses were the predominant strain through most of the season, the state reports that “numbers of influenza B viruses are now circulating in approximately equal numbers with influenza A viruses.”
This has been a particularly difficult flu season, both in Connecticut and nationwide. The severity of the season might have been exacerbated by a vaccine that was not as effective as many had hoped. According to the Centers for Disease Control and Prevention announced, this season's flu vaccine was, on average, 36 percent effective at preventing flu infections.