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Nueces County flu cases continue to rise as temperatures drop

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NUECES COUNTY, Tx — Have your friends, family or coworkers caught the flu recently? They're not the only ones. Flu season is here. In fact, cases are climbing in Nueces County as temperatures start to drop.

Six year old Aiden Garza paid a visit to Amistad Health this week.

“He ended up with the flu this past season,” mother April Mauricio said.

His mom, April, said he started feeling sick on his last day of school before winter break.

“When they’re that age, there is no boundaries,” Mauricio said.

She noticed he wasn’t his usual self.

“He’s normally bouncing off the walls, excited about life. He was very fatigued. He didn’t want to move.”

She took him to the emergency room where she learned how much the flu has been spread around.

“When we got there, the nurse said out of 160 something kids, 120 were positive for the flu,” Mauricio said.

CEO of Amistad Health Dr. Eric Baggerman said the spike in flu cases hit Nueces County in December, and as the weather gets colder, it’s not likely to go away just yet.

“When you’ve got cold, dry air, our immune system, particularly in our nasal passages which is where most of this flu comes in, doesn’t do as good of a job fighting it off,” Baggerman said.

Each year, the flu changes with different strains.

“Our body hasn’t seen it before. It’s different than what our body has fought off before. So it typically hits a little bit harder,” Baggerman said.

That’s why Baggerman stressed the importance of getting the flu vaccine.

“Each year our flu vaccine is a little bit different. We make it trying to anticipate what we’re going to arm our body against when we get that flu vaccine,” Baggerman said.

Because anyone can get the flu.

“It doesn’t matter how many times you’ve gotten the flu, you’re going to get knocked down again. It can take out the whole household,” Mauricio said.

If you do get knocked down by the flu,expect it to last a while.

“It’s not uncommon for flu to hit someone hard for seven to 10 days and symptoms for 14 days,” Baggerman said.

If someone is feeling a cough, congestion, sore throat, a headache, or even a stomach ache, it’s important to reduce transmission to those who are high risk.

You should wash your hands often, sneeze into your sleeve, and stay about three feet away from others.

Dr. Baggerman said everyone should get vaccinated, especially those considered high risk like kids under two, those over 65, those with lung conditions, and those with deficiencies in their immune system.

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