State Reports Nearly 4,700 Flu Cases
Shoppers Line Up For Flu Shot At K-Mart
POSTED: 11:12 a.m. MST December 1, 2003
UPDATED: 11:32 a.m. MST December 1, 2003
DENVER -- The flu virus that has killed four children in the state is spreading rapidly. There are 4,687 confirmed cases of the flu reported to the state, the Colorado Department of Public Health and Environment said Monday.
That number is 730 more cases than the 3,957 confirmed flu cases reported by the department on the Wednesday before Thanksgiving.
Many hope that the long holiday weekend out of the classroom kept some of the flu from spreading. Some schools in the state report a 30 percent absenteeism rate because of the flu.
Flu shots are being administered in record numbers around the state. Even during the rush of the holiday shopping, more than 200 people lined up for a flu shot at a K-mart on Federal.
Unfortunately, the vaccine does not target the exact strain of this year's virus but doctors say it's still a person's best defense against the flu.
The latest number is almost double the number of cases the state had all of last year. Colorado had 2,681 confirmed flu cases last flu season; 3,558 cases the year before that and 1,518 cases during the 2000-2001 flu season. There were only 1,210 reported flu cases during the 1999-2000 flu season.
The department first reported 694 confirmed flu cases on Monday, Nov. 17; 1,525 confirmed flu cases on Wednesday, Nov. 19; and 2,648 on Monday, Nov. 24.
Doctors fear the recent outbreak in the state is the worst in 20 years. State health officials say parents should bring their child to
the doctor if a high fever persists or the child is listless and can't keep fluids down.
  Colorado Flu Hotline:(877) 462-2911 Find Flu Clinic: (888) 692-0269SLIDESHOW:Tips For Fighting Flu At Work QUIZ:  Flu Shots: True Or False? Why It Takes So Little To Catch FluSchool Reacts To Student's Flu DeathHow Flu Killed An 8-Year-Old BoyDoctors: Don't Use Common Remedy On FluDoctors Race To Slow Flu Spread FAQsPreventionProtect KidsFlu ShotsChicken Soup? Did You Get The Flu? Immunize Colorado: Find Flu ClinicColo. Flu SurveillanceCold Or Flu?CDC Flu Site |
Previous Stories:
- November 28, 2003: Airport Workers Join Fight Against Flu
- November 26, 2003: Parents Stunned After Son Dies Of Flu
- November 25, 2003: Three More Children Die From Flu
- November 25, 2003: Number Of Flu Cases Surges In Colorado
- November 21, 2003: Colorado Teen Becomes Season's First Flu Fatality
- November 20, 2003: Colorado's Flu Outbreak Spreading
- November 19, 2003: Flu Outbreak Closes Fairplay Schools
- November 18, 2003: Flu Cases In State Up 300 Percent In One Week
- November 18, 2003: Flu Outbreak Shuts Down School District
- November 18, 2003: Flu Season Starts Early
- November 17, 2003: Doctor Dispels Myths As Flu Season Begins
- November 16, 2003: Experts: Flu Season Off To Rough Start
- November 14, 2003: Number Of Flu Cases Rapidly Rising
- November 10, 2003: Coloradoans Worst At Immunizing Children
- November 4, 2003: Flu Outbreak Hits Larimer County School
- October 16, 2003: Health Officials Remind People To Get Their Flu Shots
Copyright 2004 by TheDenverChannel.com. The Associated Press contributed to this report. All rights reserved. This material may not be published, broadcast, rewritten or redistributed.
