Now that Thanksgiving travel is behind us, healthcare providers across metro Detroit are seeing a clear jump in seasonal illnesses.
See the full story in the video below
I checked in with a local urgent care physician and family medicine doctor to see what's bugging metro Detroit.
At Get Well Urgent Care, Chief Medical Officer Dr. Arpon Shahed says this is the time of year when viruses surge.
"We're seeing a small spike in COVID, seeing a small spike in influenza," Shahed said.
Influenza A is leading the way, and hydration is one of the most important parts of recovering from the flu or COVID.
"Get your fever under control with over-the-counter medication or prescription strength medication, and really, hydration is the mainstay of treatment for that," Shahed said.
Hydration is also key for norovirus. It's a leading cause for gastroenteritis and the symptoms can be really nasty.
"You can have a lot of vomiting, a lot of aches and chills, and a lot of diarrhea," Shahed said.
Norovirus is most active between November and April and is spread through contaminated surfaces, water, or food, coming into contact with anyone infected.
Shahed also says RSV is beginning to rise, too, especially among infants and older adults.
"If they have difficulty breathing, what we call belly breathing or accessory breathing, we do send them to the emergency room for some more aggressive supportive care," Shahed said.
At Henry Ford Health, family medicine physician Dr. Jennifer Burgess is seeing a wide range of respiratory illnesses.
"We're also seeing a little bit of an uptick in COVID and influenza B," Burgess said.
According to a spokesperson at Henry Ford Health, the flu positivity rate rose to 11.3% last week, up from 9.5% the week before and from 3.1% at the beginning of November.
The COVID-19 positivity climbed to 5.3% last week, nearly double the 2.7% for the week ending Nov. 8.
RSV positivity ticked up to 2.1% last week, the highest level observed this fall.
Burgess sees more bronchitis in her practice and it's affecting every age group.
"So bronchitis is the bronchial system in the lungs becoming inflamed, causing a nasty cough," Burgess said.
She said in most cases, antibiotic will not help in most cases, because bronchitis is usually viral. So, supportive care and treating symptoms is usually the best option, but not for everyone.
"Those kids under the age of four tend to be hit a little bit harder, as well as the over sixty crowd," Burgess said.
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She also said there have been more norovirus cases in her practice, and it's also showing up in Washtenaw County.
Wastewater surveillance at the University of Michigan's Wiggington-Eisenberg Laboratory in Ann Arbor shows a moderate rate, but Tecumseh in Lenawee County is reporting high norovirus levels, and moderate levels of rotavirus, another bug that can cause vomiting and diarrhea.
"We do actually have a vaccination for rotavirus that can be given at two months and four months to babies, since potentially the side effects in babies and toddler can be detrimental," Burgess said.
If you have a fever that will not come down, trouble breathing, signs of dehydration, or symptoms that last longer than a week, you should be seen by a doctor.
