Summer Covid-19 wave picks up the pace

Sharp increase seen in wastewater concentration in Midwest

bY DR, CAITLIN RIVERS (Reprinted with permission

AUG 12, 2023

Respiratory viruses

The summer Covid-19 wave has intensified, based on recent data from Biobot. The Midwestern region saw a sharp increase in viral concentration in wastewater, returning to levels not seen since February. Parts of Kansas, Iowa, and Missouri are particularly affected. However, hospitalization metrics remain low in those states.

I remain more concerned about the South, where nearly 2% of visits to the ER are for Covid-19, up from a recent low of less than 0.5%. Florida, in particular, has an elevated wastewater concentration and increasing hospital metrics, including ER visits for Covid-19 and hospital admissions.

On the bright side, nationwide hospital admissions are still substantially lower than they were this time last year, which I find encouraging. But there is one major caveat: the number of hospitals submitting data may have changed from then to now. As in previous years, the most affected age group is people aged 70 and older. If you are an older adult or if you are immunocompromised, it’s a good idea to take extra precautions.

A new Covid-19 booster is expected to become available next month; I think it will be a good match to current variants. The flu vaccine will also become available soon, but I recommend waiting until later in the season to get that one.

In other news, cold-causing viruses like rhinovirus and the seasonal coronaviruses are going around, so expect some stuffy noses as school starts. Everything else looks good. RSV and influenza remain low, as expected this time of year. Winter respiratory virus season doesn’t usually pick up until October at the earliest, so I hope we don’t add those to the mix for several more months.

Food recalls

The following foods are being recalled because they are contaminated. Please check your cupboards and throw out any of these items:

Soft Serve on the Go ice cream cups (more info)
Certain ready-to-eat salads and wraps in Minnesota and Wisconsin (more info)
If you have food allergies, you may wish to review these FDA safety alerts for foods with undeclared allergens.

If you want to know more about what to expect for the season ahead, I shared a winter outlook last week. In short, I think we will have another tough winter, but there is reason to hope that it won’t be quite as bad as last year.