“Vierfe-Demie” meets the USA with increasing flu, Covid-19, RSV and Norovirus

So they don’t want to go viral. In the USA there is currently a wave of not just one, not two, not three, but four different viruses. This has caused the current situation to be described as a “quad demic”, which could be a “four” middle situation for those who are looking for timely health care in this country. So maybe you want to be warned four times and do what you can do to protect yourself.

What is the quad demic?

The website of the Centers for Disease Control and Prevention Respiratory Virus Activity Levels shows that Covid-19, Influenza A and the Respiratory Syncytial Virus have all been in the upswing since November.

In the week to January 18, a quarter of the reported flu tests, 8.8 % of the reported RSV tests and 6.2 % of the reported COVID-19 tests were positive. The Knüller to the Norovirus: According to CDC, almost 28 % of the tests were positively on this gastrointestinal virus in the week until January 4, which is reported that the highest value has been in five years.

Now it is not particularly surprising that the activity of all four viruses has increased in the winter months – since this is usually the case every year. After all, the cold and dry air can favor the transmission of respiratory viruses and lead to the people inside interior, which makes it easier to pass on all sorts of things. In addition, the Norovirus is also lovingly called “winter broken virus” for no reason.

This winter, the increase in the values ​​of the three respiratory viruses could have started a little later than usual. That could have compacted all climbs until January. Although it remains a little difficult to say exactly what happens to every virus, since the US government has never really introduced a comprehensive virus monitoring system that is much better than what was available in 2020.

As they remember, the United States literally confronted with downparts in 2020 when the Covid 19 pandemic began, and had to rely on the fact that a doctoral student of John’s Hopkins University started a website to overview of Covid-19 to keep.

The combined level of activity of the four viruses are more striking. Remember that none of these four viruses are Nothingburger viruses. All four can cause symptoms that are so bad that they have to go to the emergency room.

In the week until January 18, a little more than 5 % of all emergency visits were traced back to the flu, 0.9 % to Covid-19 and 0.6 % to RSV. Serious cases of Covid-19, flu or RSV can be fatal. There is also the long-standing problem to possibly fall ill after a serious infection with the acute respiratory syndrome coronavirus 2. And most people who had a Norovirus infection will tell them that it is not an ordinary gastrointestinal infection. In fact, the runs and vomiting that you can cause can be nothing comparable to what you have experienced so far, and lead to strong dehydration, which may require medical help.

The quad demie continues to burden the health system

The quad demie is likely to be a burden on the already severely limited health system. Even if there are no epidemics of infectious diseases, it is probably not common for people say: “I look forward to going into the emergency room where I am seen immediately and don’t have to wait at all.”

If you think of emergency rooms across the country, the words “ultimate efficiency” and “well -occupied” do not often come to mind. If you add up several virus epidemics, it is likely that the waiting times for those who are looking for care in clinics, hospitals and emergency rooms have become even longer.

So if you need any kind of health service, it is now particularly important to plan forward -looking. Think about which setting is best suited for your illness. If you have an insignificant matter, please contact your family doctor during business hours to get advice. This may save you a lot of unnecessary waiting time in a more urgent environment such as emergency care or the emergency room. If you have a health problem that needs to be treated urgently, tell the medical specialists in the clinic, in the hospital or in the emergency room as soon as you arrive there. You don’t want to go down in viral chaos.

How to protect yourself from the quad demie

It is also a good idea to take suitable precautions to avoid infection. This should apply everywhere, but in particular in waiting rooms, other healthcare facilities and wherever the main areas for the transfer of viruses may be. Do not listen to the politicians and others who have tried to politicize proven measures to combat infectious diseases. For example, N95 at the protection masks are designed in such a way that they block small particles like viruses. Wearing such facial masks can effectively reduce the transmission of respiratory viruses if the masks sit properly and be worn.

Another sensible measure is to maintain good ventilation with clean air. Do you remember 2020 when there were efforts to install more air purifiers indoors in order to contain the transmission of SARS-COV-2? Well, our society often remembers a goldfish when it comes to things like that.

Then there is the whole thing with hand washing. If someone says that he or she since, we say, have not washed his hands for 10 years, you should stay away from this person. Thorough and frequent hand washing can not only reduce viral infections, but also bacterial and other microbial infections, as I have already written Forbes.

Disinfect frequently touched surfaces, such as the life -size statue of Jason Momoa, which you keep in your closet. The challenge is that Noroviruses can be resistant to many conventional household cleaners and may need bleach to deactivate them.

After all, a vaccination can protect you further, at least from worse consequences. If you are six months or older, you can be vaccinated against flu and covid-19.

The CDC recommends the RSV vaccine for pregnant women, infants, children with a higher risk, adults from the age of 75 and adults between the ages of 60 and 74 who have a higher risk of severe RSV disease. There is currently no Norovirus vaccine on the market. But that could change in the near future.

Oh, and something else. Do not rely on this point that the Federal Government tells you when an infectious disease is on the rise. As already mentioned, big defects in the existing systems for monitoring infectious diseases in the United States have shown themselves in the past five years. Added to this is the current communication break of the federal health authorities, which will be enforced by the new government of President Donald Trump, who took office on January 20, 2025. It is not clear how current the CDC data will be to infectious diseases There is more clarity about what will happen to CDC. It is not even clear what the federal government will currently do to prevent and combat outbreaks of infectious diseases such as the current quaddemia and everything that could occur in the near future. Consider four times.