Flu season hits county

The typical absentee rate during flu season is 6 percent.

Boundary County School District’s absentee rate hovered in the 10 to 11 percent range last week, according to the Panhandle Health District.

Seasonal flu is on the rise in Idaho’s five northern counties. Results of lab tests from last week show 53 percent of the cases are Type A and 47 percent are Type B. Hospital labs have conducted 456 tests to date; results in 68 of those tests, or 15 percent, were positive for the flu virus.

 Flu is not reportable in Idaho, but school absentee rates and the number of visits to medical offices offer an indication of how widespread it is. Absentee rates at a middle school in Benewah County ranged from 15 percent to 18 percent last week.

Two deaths in northern Idaho since October have been attributed to the flu. Both were adults, one male and one female.

Reports of patients with flu symptoms have varied from sentinel medical providers in northern Idaho but have remained below the regional threshold. However, many people don’t go to the doctor with flu symptoms. Flu is a respiratory illness. Symptoms include fever, headache, fatigue and, sometimes, a cough and sore throat.