Whitewater Senior Center, Whitewater Township. That could mean more people, especially seniors, in need of hospital care this winter. Should the peak hit earlier than normal, the situation would be even worse. Some places have received their first vaccine shipments. Many more campaigns will be launched in November as shipments come in.
Influenza is a common, upper-respiratory disease started by a viral infection.
It makes healthy adults feel as if they've been run over by a truck and can be deadly to people in weaker shape. Typically, influenza and related illnesses kill about 20,000 Americans a year. Concerns about hospital capacity have added urgency to flu-season predictions. In Greater Cincinnati, hospitals are in especially weak condition to handle a surge of patients. During the past two winters, routine levels of flu and other winter infections taxed the system, forcing several hospitals to divert patients.