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Flu also likes visiting Florida

By STEPHEN NOHLGREN
Published December 16, 2006

Start washing those hands.

Florida led the nation in flu cases last week, with "widespread" incidence, the Centers for Disease Control and Prevention says.

Earlier this month, the illness was centered in Broward County and the Panhandle, but now cases also are popping up in the Tampa Bay area and other parts of the state.

"We knew it was all around us and we knew it had to get to us eventually," Jeannine Mallory, spokeswoman for the Pinellas County Health Department, said Friday. "You can't have something north and south of you and not get it eventually."

Bayfront Convenient Care Clinics began seeing the increase about a week ago, said nurse Sally McCall.

"It's unusual for this time of the year," she said. Flu season usually starts in late December and peaks in February. But last week, Bayfront's busiest walk-in clinics started seeing three or four cases a day.

Flu cases in the southeastern United States have been running ahead of the rest of the country for several weeks, Mallory said. Last week, the CDC ranked Florida as having "regional" outbreaks during the week ending Dec. 2.

That status was changed to "widespread" for the most recent reporting period, which ended Dec. 9.

So why Florida?

Tourists fly in on crowded airplanes, spreading the virus from one person to another. Warm weather encourages people to get out and socialize. Holiday parties lead to hugs and handshakes.

Flu is mainly airborne, spread through sickly coughs. But the virus also lingers on door handles and money, Mallory said.

"That's why it's so important to wash hands frequently," she said. "It can be anywhere. You can push the button in an elevator, then touch your eyes, nose and mouth and you may have infected yourself."

Mallory urged people to protect themselves with flu shots, available through doctors' offices, walk-in clinics, the health department and some chain grocery and drug stores.

The shots, which usually cost around $30, take two weeks for full effect, but some benefit begins earlier.

[Last modified December 16, 2006, 00:59:04]