U.S. flu activity remains elevated, and nine states experienced high influenza-like illness activity for the week ending Jan. 12, according to the CDC's most recent FluView report.
Five things to know:
1. The percentage of outpatient visits for influenza-like illness decreased from 3.5 percent to 3.1 percent for the week ending Jan. 12, which is still above the national baseline of 2.2 percent. All 10 regions reported influenza-like illness at or above their region-specific baseline level.
2. The percentage of respiratory specimens testing positive for flu is increasing. The CDC confirmed 3,730 positive specimens for influenza A and 126 positive specimens for influenza B for the week ending Jan. 12.
3. The CDC reported 3,568 laboratory-confirmed flu-associated hospitalizations from Oct. 1 through Jan. 12. The overall flu-associated hospitalization rate was 12.4 per 100,000 population.
4. Three pediatric flu deaths were reported to CDC for the week ending Jan. 12. A total of 19 pediatric flu deaths have been reported for the current season.
5. Thirty states reported widespread flu activity for the week ending Jan. 12. Sixteen states reported regional flu activity; three states reported local flu activity; and one state reported sporadic activity.