The ‘triple disease’ of influenza, Covid-19 and respiratory syncytial virus is a major concern for Park County Health Officer Dr. Aaron Bilin, with all three respiratory viruses on the rise in recent weeks. said it does.
Tripledemic is a term coined to describe the simultaneous presence of all three viruses within a community, which is usually rare, he said.
“All respiratory viruses tend to follow cycles,” said Villin. “But rarely do these cycles cross at the same time as they do this year.”
Birin said the increase in all three viruses has led to many public health safety measures, such as washing hands, wearing a mask, covering one’s mouth when coughing, and staying home especially when one has symptoms of illness. We believe that this is due to the fact that countermeasures have not been followed.
“Especially after Covid, everyone wants things to be normal,” said Billin. But what’s really happening is that we’re diagnosing these people in the emergency room five to seven days after they get sick. That means the virus was circulating in the community all that time.
According to Billin, the three most common viruses in Park County right now are influenza A.
“The extent of the illness we are seeing is about the same compared to previous flu seasons,” he said. increase.”
Bilin said he’s also seen RSV at “two to three times normal levels” this year, which included an alarming number of adult cases.
According to the Centers for Disease Control and Prevention, RSV is a common and highly contagious respiratory virus that causes cold-like symptoms such as runny nose, cough, sneezing, fever and wheezing.
The virus is usually found in small children and can cause asthma-like symptoms in children under the age of five, says Birin. Not this year, he said.
“Powell now has two adults over the age of 65 with RSV who require hospitalization,” Billin said. “It’s very unusual.”
RSV is especially dangerous for immunocompromised adults over the age of 65 who have chronic heart or lung disease, he said.
Covid-19 also remains a concern for the county, Billin said. Across the state, Covid cases have increased in recent weeks, but the risk of infection remains low in Park County, according to the CDC, Billin said.
As of January 3, there was only one laboratory-confirmed active Covid case in Park County, according to the Wyoming Department of Health. Billin previously told Cody Enterprise that the number of Covid cases is often higher than reported because many people are choosing to test at home or not be tested at all.
Billin said he expects a new variant of Covid to arrive in Wyoming in the near future. 40% of the population, but there is no evidence that it is more dangerous, he said.
Billin said he is not aware of any cases of XX.1.5 in Wyoming or Park County at this time.
“Because of our rural nature, we are the last to get many of these subspecies in Wyoming,” he said. Based on that, we will definitely find our way here eventually.”
All three respiratory viruses are spread in similar ways, such as through contaminated surfaces and sneezing and coughing, according to Billin.
Therefore, the public health measures recommended at the start of the Covid pandemic are still recommended: Cover your mouth when coughing. Wash your hands frequently. And most importantly, stay home if you have symptoms.
Vaccines for influenza and Covid, as well as booster shots of the latter, are also recommended, which can reduce the spread of these viruses, he said.
