Flu arrives early in Tri-Cities, as ERs are busy with respiratory cases. More COVID deaths

More people have died of respiratory infections, including four more Tri-Cities residents from COVID-19 and six more Washingtons state residents from influenza.

The Washington state Department of Health has confirmed 13 deaths from flu this season.

None of the deaths were in the Tri-Cities, but the number of flu cases are climbing quickly in Benton and Franklin counties, said Dr. Larry Jecha, interim health officer for Benton and Franklin counties.

Flu cases in the Tri-Cities have lagged those in Western Washington this season, but the virus still has arrived four to six weeks early in the Tri-Cities area, he said. Cases are expected to continue to increase following holiday gatherings.

Emergency departments in the Tri-Cities area are seeing more patients with the flu and a continuing increase in cases of respiratory syncytial virus infection, or RSV, while still treating some COVID cases, said Heather Hill, infectious disease supervisor for the Benton Franklin Health District, speaking this week on the Kadlec on Call podcast.

RSV is a common virus but the Centers for Disease Control and Prevention reports higher-than-expected numbers and more severe cases this fall, according to the Benton Franklin Health District.

The Washington state Department of Health rates influenza activity in the state now as “very high.”

The 13 Washington deaths confirmed by positive flu tests have include two youth ages 5 to 17; one adult age 18 to 29; five adults ages 50 to 64; and five adults age 65 and older.

Tri-Cities COVID

The four recent Tri-Cities area deaths from COVID-19 include a man and a woman in their 50s and a man and a woman in their 80s, all of them Benton County residents.

The Benton Franklin Health District usually releases data on recent COVID-19 deaths once a week on Thursdays, but data was not available Thanksgiving week, making the report released Dec. 1 the first in two weeks.

The updated count brings the death toll due to complications of COVID-19 since the start of the pandemic to 742.

The concentration of genetic material from the virus that causes COVID-19 in samples of untreated wastewater from municipal plants in Kennewick, Pasco, Richland and West Richland has been increasing over the past month. But it remains at less than half the level of the summer peak of COVID-19 caused by the omicron variant.

Residents are urged to get up to date on their flu and COVID vaccines as soon as possible as December holidays approach. That can limit their chances of getting two respiratory infections at the same time, Hill told the Tri-City Herald.

Hospital emergency departments

Emergency departments and walk-in clinics are being strained by the increase in respiratory cases, with some extended wait times for emergency room treatment, Hill said.

Public health officials are urging residents to go to hospital emergency departments only in true emergencies to allow staff there to handle the most pressing cases. Many illnesses can be handled at walk-in clinics.

The Benton Franklin Health District says issues that call for treatment in the emergency room include:

▪ An injury or illness that threatens a life or a limb.

▪ Difficulty breathing, loss of consciousness or seizure.

▪ Severe abdominal pain, allergic reactions, burns or skin infections.

▪ High fever with headache or persistent dizziness.

▪ Dehydration or a fast heartbeat that does not slow down.