Nearly 1,000 cases of influenza, including six fatalities, have been confirmed in Delaware in a single week, the most the state has seen in the decade it has been recording weekly data.
Officials said 995 lab-confirmed flu cases were recorded during the week ending Feb. 3. The previous high of 671 came during the 2009-2010 flu season.
For the current flu season, nearly 3,000 flu cases have been confirmed in the state thus far, officials said. Six flu deaths were reported during the week, bringing Delaware's total this season to 10.
Karyl Rattay, director of Delaware's division of public health, six of the 10 fatalities came in people who had received the flu vaccine, which has been less effective this year.
Still, Rattay urged people to get vaccinated if they have not yet. She said it's the single most important step people can take to protect themselves.
The six who died most recently in Delaware ranged in age from 60 to 93, and all had underlying health conditions, Rattay said. Four of the six were men. Five lived in New Castle County. The sixth lived in Sussex.
Rattay also urged people to wash hands frequently and avoid going to work going out in public if ill. Those who are sick, she said, should rely on primary-care physicians if possible rather than hospital emergency rooms, where resources are taxed.
