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Norwalk health staff report high influenza activity, ongoing COVID and RSV monitoring
Summary
Norwalk public health staff told the Board of Health on Jan. 28 that influenza activity in Connecticut and nationally is high; COVID-19 and RSV continue to circulate at lower levels, and wastewater and hospital data will be monitored for early signals including rare H5N1 detections in animals.
Norwalk public health staff reported to the Board of Health on Jan. 28 that influenza is currently the dominant respiratory threat locally and nationally, while COVID-19 and respiratory syncytial virus (RSV) continue to circulate at lower levels.
Brian Weeks, an epidemiology staff member, told board members that national Centers for Disease Control and Prevention (CDC) surveillance shows “flu is very high and increasing” while COVID-19 is low and decreasing for emergency department visits. He said Connecticut mirrors the national pattern and that wastewater surveillance is a useful early indicator for viral trends. “You can see how COVID and RSV remain high and then flu at very high,” Weeks said. He also noted Mycoplasma pneumoniae (walking pneumonia) has contributed to respiratory illness this season and urged people to follow up with health care providers if they suspect pneumonia.
The update highlighted age-group patterns: pediatric groups — especially children ages 5–17 and children under 1 — are driving higher emergency-department visit rates. Weeks also warned that seasonal factors and travel (for example, spring break) could shift patterns and lead to additional waves.
Board members asked about other viruses. Frank Ehrlich asked whether human metapneumovirus (HMPV) has been detected locally; Weeks said HMPV circulates during respiratory seasons, is less common than influenza, and typically affects immunocompromised patients and hospitalized people. Anthony Centella asked about avian influenza; staff said the state has reported detections in backyard flocks and some domestic animals in the region and that the department is in a monitoring and messaging phase. Staff advised the public not to handle sick or dead birds and to contact animal-control authorities for removal.
Staff reiterated standard prevention and mitigation measures: vaccination, hand hygiene, staying home while febrile, masking and testing during the first days after symptoms, and improving indoor air quality where feasible. Weeks noted the CDC recently issued a Health Alert Network message to clinicians emphasizing subtyping of influenza A in hospitalized patients to detect rare human cases of H5N1.
The Board received the update; no formal action was taken.
