US health officials hopeful as flu cases fall for second week

WASHINGTON D.C.: After an initial surge at the start of the season, flu cases are now declining in many parts of the US.

A national surveillance system run by the Centers for Disease Control and Prevention (CDC) said that hospital admissions for flu declined for the second consecutive week.

CDC's Lynnette Brammer, who leads the government agency's tracking of flu in the US, said, "It looks like, for this first wave of flu activity, maybe we have seen the worst of that. There is still a lot of flu spreading out there. CDC data indicates flu activity last week was high or very high in 45 states," as reported by the Associated Press.

Dr. William Schaffner, Vanderbilt University infectious diseases expert, said, "The current decline does not mean flu will recede for the rest of the winter, second surges are common. Viruses love to make you look foolish when you are predicting what they are going to do," as reported by the Associated Press.

This season, the CDC estimates there have been some 190,000 hospitalizations and 12,000 deaths caused by flu, including at least 17 fatalities among children.

Flu vaccines are recommended for nearly all Americans from 6 months of age or older.