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The flu has begun to recede in most of the country - except in New Jersey and surrounding states. (Photo courtesy of the U.S. Centers for Disease Control and Prevention)
New Jersey remains one of just seven states where the flu is still widespread, according to the latest update from the U.S. Centers for Disease Control and Prevention.
Cases of the illness have receded from their seasonal highs in most other regions of the country.
"We are trending downward, although not as quickly as the other states," said Christina Tan, the state epidemiologist.
However, she expects an uptick in a different strain of the virus - one that typically becomes active in early spring instead of mid-winter.
For that reason, she continues to recommend a flu shot for anyone who isn't vaccinated.
Flu activity is "widespread" throughout the state, according to data collected by the state and forwarded to the CDC. High levels of school absenteeism popped up twice this season - once right before Christmas, and a second time in mid-February. In both cases, schools reported 9-10 percent of students were absent. That rate has settled down to just 4 percent in the latest surveillance report, for mid-March.
Despite those cases, only one child has died of the flu in New Jersey this year. State officials were unable to provide more details about that case.
"Fortunately we haven't seen too many pediatric deaths, which is great," said Tan.
So far Monmouth County has seen the highest number of confirmed cases reported to the state by the medical practices that give the state information about what they're seeing among their patients. Those practices are deemed to be representative of the county-wide experience.
Ocean County has reported the second-highest number of cases.
Nationally, this flu season has hit the elderly the hardest. The flu-associated hospitalization rate among people 65 and older the highest rate recorded since the CDC began tracking it in 2005. The CDC reported in February that nearly 60 percent of flu-associated hospitalizations have been among people 65 years and older. The agency estimated then that more than 92,000 seniors would've been hospitalized for the flu at that point in the season.
There is no way to know how many cases of flu the state has seen because most people who come down with it don't get tested for it, Tan said. However, surveillance date from six New Jersey cities - Trenton, Elizabeth, Jersey City, Paterson, Newark and Camden - go into the CDC's national report.
The predominant strain of flu here has been H3N2, a version of the A strain. Its emergence took flu experts by surprise, causing those responsible for selecting which version of the flu vaccine to use this season to guess wrong. The current vaccine is effective against H3N2 only 18 percent of the time.
However, it is 40 percent effective against the B strain, and that's the strain that tends to crop up late in the season, said Tan.
For that reason, she recommends that people who never got a flu shot this season should get one now. It will offer some protection for a late surge of B flu that usually appears at the tail end of flu season.
For those who assume it's too late to get a flu shot, she cites the 2009 flu season that featured the H1N1 strain. Those cases continued to show up in April, and even May, she said.
Kathleen O'Brien may be reached at kobrien@njadvancemedia.com, or at (732) 902-4557. Follow her on Twitter @OBrienLedger. Find NJ.com on Facebook.