Influenza Appears In Montana, Last Season Had 34 Deaths and 433 Hospitalizations
Two strains of influenza have been diagnosed in Montana over the past two weeks, Missoula City-County Health Department Registered Nurse Pam Whitney explains.
"The age ranges are from childhood to elderly... so they are all over the board here," said Whitney. "We've had three confirmed here in Missoula County and two in Lewis and Clark County. With that being said, we are telling everyone that it is not too late. Now is the time to come and get your flu shots."
Epidemiologist Stacey Anderson offered a detailed look at the impact of influenza last year.
"Last season, which is between October and June 1, we had nearly 5,000 cases of influenza reported in Montana," said Anderson. "433 Montanans were hospitalized and there were 34 deaths."
The two strains of Influenza were both domestic cases and did not arrive in Montana from out of state. Anderson says that both types of the influenza A virus discovered so far are included in this year’s Flu Vaccine batch.