Belmont Fights the Flu

Belmont Health Services Clinic, Haley Ramsey

Dubbed the “super flu" by some, subclade K is the newest and most prominent flu strain this fall and winter, boasting the highest number of cases in at least 25 years, according to the CDC.

Despite this, Belmont hasn’t experienced a notable spike in flu or respiratory sickness at its health services clinic. 

“It seems like we had a few cases right when people came back, but it’s kind of stabilized a little bit right now,” said director of health services Krystal Huesmann.

Students aren’t completely out of the woods, though, because influenza-like illnesses tend to peak statewide in January and February, said Tennessee Department of Health official Bill Christian.

Even Belmont associate professor of immunology Tanu Rana warns that the illness could spread further and cause more hospitalizations in the coming weeks.

“This might go from being moderate severity to higher severity because we’ll have more cases, we’ll have more people getting sick,” said Rana.

Rana also emphasized that the “super flu” title is misleading, and said it's only being called that because of the high number of cases and that it carries mutations.

“It’s not more deadly or more serious than other circulating viruses,” she said.

While the current vaccine came out before subclade K began circulating, the best way to guard against it and other flu strains is still to be vaccinated. The Tennessee Department of Health recommends everyone get their flu shots, as it can provide cross-protection. 

“The vaccine is still the best protection we have against the flu and can help to prevent hospitalization and death,” said Christian. 

Belmont Health Services provided over 1,600 flu shots since September to students, faculty and staff and saw an 18% increase in their two vaccine clinics this fall, said Huesmann. 

Along with getting a flu shot, Huesmann recommends prioritizing good habits to keep students as healthy as possible during the flu season.  

“We’re really encouraging people to really adhere to good handwashing, eating, sleeping, and moving; doing those things that help your body’s immune system work at its best,” said Huesmann. 

Physicians recommend flu shots in the fall to protect against the first wave of sickness during the holidays, but Rana said, depending on how an individual’s body processes it, the flu vaccine can be effective about a week after getting the shot.

The Health Services Clinic is still offering free flu testing and flu vaccines throughout the season.

This article was written by Haley Ramsey