Monmouth County Hospital Sees Nearly Triple Number of Flu Cases

HOLMDEL, NJ — The 2018 flu season is now officially being called an epidemic, and the sharp increase in flu patients is being seen right here in Monmouth County.

Bayshore Medical Center in Holmdel is currently seeing a 187 percent increase in flu patients this January compared to last, said Dr. Roman Tuma, the vice president of clinical effectiveness and medical affairs at Bayshore, which is part of Hackensack Meridian Health.

So far this month alone, Bayshore confirmed 69 cases of the flu, with 22 patients admitted for it. Compare that to January 2017, when they had 24 confirmed flu cases and only five admissions.

"We're seeing way higher numbers," said Dr. Tuma. "It's definitely a national epidemic."

Because the flu is so contagious, some hospitals in the Hackensack Meridian chain are not allowing visitors under the age of 12. K. Hovnanian Children's Hospital at Jersey Shore University Medical Center has implemented this policy, and Bayshore is mulling whether to do the same, he said.

Tragically, the flu has killed 30 children so far in the U.S. this year, a third of them during the week ending Jan. 13, according to the Centers for Disease Control. Some of those children had received flu shots, but died anyway.

As of Jan. 22, the flu has killed one child so far in New Jersey, the state health department said: A 4-year-old child from Central New Jersey died of flu-related complications at the end of December. The child had not received a flu shot. The state would not disclose where the child was from due to privacy reasons. The state of New Jersey does not keep track of adult deaths from the flu.

Robert Wood Johnson University Hospital in New Brunswick and CentraState Medical Center in Freehold are also seeing big increases in flu patients this year. Last January, CentraState treated 70 people for the flu, and admitted eight. This January is not even over and already they've treated 193 people and admitted twelve, the hospital said. That's a 175 percent increase in flu patients.

Neither Bayshore nor CentraState has had to admit children with the flu so far. It is unknown if Robert Wood Johnson has.

"Our pediatric department saw five children yesterday with the flu, but fortunately none of them had to be admitted," said Dr. Bruce Bonanno, an ER physician at CentraState. "It started picking up steam just after Christmas. We're putting masks on people if they come into the ER with a fever or are coughing or sneezing."

So far, the 2018 flu season has not reached historic levels, but it is on par with the worst flu season in recent years, the 2014-2015 season. As with any flu virus, the people most at risk are the elderly, children under five and people who are immunocompromised, such as pregnant women, cancer patients or people with chronic diseases.

"The people we're admitting to the hospital are 50 to 90 years old," said Dr. Tuma at Bayshore. "It's because this H3N2 flu strain that's currently circulating is more aggressive and the vaccine is not working as well against it as it should."

Flu season is always in the fall and winter because the virus grows best in certain atmospheric conditions, Dr. Tuma explained, such as at certain temperatures and humidity levels.

What's the best way to keep yourself and your family safe? Avoid people who are sick. The flu spreads from someone coughing or sneezing, or from touching hands and surfaces. Don't visit people in the hospital and stay home from work or school if you feel sick. The best way to treat the flu is drink lots of fluids and rest.

"We are also getting people in their 20s coming into the ER with the flu this year," said Dr. Bonanno. "Their doctor told them it's the flu, but they come into the ER because they can't believe they feel so bad. I have to tell them, 'Getting a cold feels like getting hit by a kid on a tricycle. Getting the flu feels like getting hit by a bus.' They want to feel better instantly, but I have to tell them, all you can do is go home and rest."

It's also not too late to get a flu shot.

"A lot of people are still not getting vaccinated like they should. And that's part of the problem," he said.

Photo provided by Bayshore.