Question: With flu season approaching, I was curious to know how widespread flu was in the southern hemisphere this year? Last year was so mild for flu, will this year be too?

Answer: When it comes to the Southern Hemisphere, a news piece published about 6 weeks ago in JAMA perfectly addresses your question. The report, Influenza’s Unprecedented Low Profile During COVID-19 Pandemic Leaves Experts Wondering What This Flu Season Has in Store, states “influenza remained scarce this summer for the second consecutive flu season in the Southern Hemisphere.”  It goes on to describe the unpredictability of the flu, quoting infectious disease expert, Dr. William Schaffner, “I don’t think anybody is willing to put down their dollars and bet… because flu is so darn fickle.”  The whole article is worth the read.

More recent trends also show lower flu activity than is typically expected. WHO’s latest influenza update of September 27th states, “Globally, despite continued or even increased testing for influenza in some countries, influenza activity remained at lower levels than expected for this time of the year.”  When it comes to the United States, CDC’s most recent weekly influenza surveillance report shows that flu activity is minimal to low across the country (Figure 1). So far, things are looking up for a mild flu season, but it’s still early and things can change! Plus, now is still the perfect time to get your flu shot, so go on and get that added protection!

Figure 1. Flu Activity across the USA, week 39 (from CDC)