As the holiday season winds down, RSV and flu cases in the U.S. are on the decline, but COVID-19 numbers are rising.
Respiratory illnesses arrived early and in force this year. Flu-like illnesses are still being reported in high numbers across the U.S. but appear to be trending downward.
RSV was a prominent virus circulating this fall, but case numbers have decreased significantly in recent weeks. RSV-related hospitalizations peaked in November 2022 and were especially high among children under 5. As of December 28, 2022, RSV-related hospitalizations are at their lowest point since the season began.
Flu cases are also gradually declining and are projected to have hospitalization rates on par with those of the 2017-2018 season. Experts warn that this projection does not guarantee flu cases will continue to decline, as a second wave of influenza A is still a possibility in the U.S.
The only virus that is currently trending upward is COVID-19, due to recent omicron subvariants such as XBB. 1.5, which isn’t expected to peak until February.
More information about the triple-demic can be found here.