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Seasonal flu cases have hit a 15-year high this year -- filling hospitals, shutting down schools, and leading to an estimated 19,000 flu-related deaths so far in the United States.
今年的季節(jié)性流感病例數(shù)創(chuàng)下了15年來的新高，導(dǎo)致醫(yī)院人滿為患，學(xué)校停課，截至目前，美國估計已有1.9萬例與流感相關(guān)的死亡病例。
These deaths even topped winter COVID-19-related deaths for the first time since the pandemic began five years ago.
這些死亡病例數(shù)甚至自五年前新冠疫情開始以來，首次超過了與冬季新冠病毒相關(guān)的死亡病例數(shù)。
While flu cases surge, RSV, norovirus, and COVID-19 infections have also remained high, "putting a significant strain on hospitals -- particularly as patients compete for the same resources such as intensive care unit beds and healthcare personnel," says Jason Nagata, a pediatrician at University of California, San Francisco Benioff Children's Hospital.
舊金山加利福尼亞大學(xué)貝尼奧夫兒童醫(yī)院兒科醫(yī)生杰森·長田表示，在流感病例激增的同時，呼吸道合胞病毒（RSV）、諾如病毒以及新冠病毒感染病例數(shù)也居高不下，“這給醫(yī)院帶來了巨大壓力，尤其是當(dāng)患者們都在爭奪重癥監(jiān)護病房床位和醫(yī)護人員等相同資源的時候。
"Hospitals are struggling to keep up with the demand, and some have been forced to set up temporary triage tents."
醫(yī)院正努力滿足需求，有些醫(yī)院甚至被迫搭建了臨時分診帳篷。”
Moreover, this flu season most closely resembles the 2019-2020 season, which saw peaks in December, February, and March.
此外，這個流感季與2019至2020年的流感季最為相似，當(dāng)時在12月、2月和3月都出現(xiàn)了發(fā)病高峰。
If a similar peak happens next month of this year, there could be even more devastation.
如果今年下個月也出現(xiàn)類似的高峰，可能會造成更大的破壞。
"It's not always clear why flu seasons vary so much in severity," says William Schaffner, an infectious disease specialist at Vanderbilt University School of Medicine, but there are likely several factors contributing to this year's significantly high numbers.
范德比爾特大學(xué)醫(yī)學(xué)院的傳染病專家威廉·沙夫納表示：“流感季的嚴重程度為何會有如此大的差異，原因并不總是很明確。”但今年流感病例數(shù)顯著增多，可能有幾個因素。
One component Schaffner points to is this year's unusually cold winter "driving people indoors, thereby increasing close contact and making it easy for the virus to spread."
沙夫納指出的一個因素是，今年冬天異常寒冷，“人們都待在室內(nèi)，從而增加了密切接觸的機會，使得病毒更容易傳播”。
Similar to RSV and COVID-19, influenza is transmitted through tiny respiratory droplets that are released when an infected person breathes, talks, coughs, or sneezes.
與呼吸道合胞病毒和新冠病毒類似，流感病毒是通過受感染的人呼吸、說話、咳嗽或打噴嚏時釋放出的微小呼吸道飛沫傳播的。
The U.S. is also likely still experiencing an "immunity gap" resulting from less exposure to the flu and other viruses during the pandemic due to COVID-19-related preventative measures, says Nagata.
長田表示，由于新冠疫情相關(guān)的預(yù)防措施，在疫情期間人們接觸流感病毒和其他病毒的機會減少，美國很可能仍處于“免疫空白期”。
Precautions like social distancing and face mask use, while critical in preventing the spread of the coronavirus, led to fewer influenza cases during the pandemic and therefore fewer antibody development in individuals to protect against subsequent flu seasons like the one occurring now.
社交距離和佩戴口罩等預(yù)防措施雖然在預(yù)防新冠病毒傳播方面至關(guān)重要，但在疫情期間導(dǎo)致流感病例減少，因此人們體內(nèi)針對后續(xù)流感季（比如現(xiàn)在這個流感季）產(chǎn)生的抗體也較少。
This flu season has also been "highly unpredictable," Nagata explains, with multiple waves of flu infections and both H1N1 and H3N2 strains circulating at the same time.
長田解釋說，這個流感季也“極難預(yù)測”，出現(xiàn)了多波流感感染，甲型H1N1和H3N2兩種毒株同時傳播。
The virus normally only sees one peak per season and has a strong predominance of one strain over another, so multiple peaks and two strains sharing the same stage is unusual.
正常情況下，病毒每個流感季只出現(xiàn)一個發(fā)病高峰，而且一種毒株會明顯占主導(dǎo)地位，所以出現(xiàn)多個高峰并且兩種毒株同時流行是不尋常的。
