Unusual spike in flu cases

On a typical week, Doctor Goddy Corpuz sees somewhere between 40 to 70 flu cases documented in Central Texas, but that wasn't the case over the last week.

“We went from 63 cases of Influenza A, to 119 cases,” said Corpuz.

Corpuz says the strain called Influenza "A" is no different from your typical flu, but people should take it seriously.

“We've had healthy people, even those who are military type, muscular-build individuals who end up in the hospital with severe pneumonia, respiratory failure and unfortunately not making it.

According to CDC estimates, between 2010 and 2014, 12 to 56,000 people in the U.S. died of flu complications.

“The number of cases we have and the number of deaths encompasses all the other viruses we're focused on lately like Ebola, and the Zika virus. The cases we see there are nothing compared to the flu cases that we see year in and year out,” said Corpuz.

Doctors blame a variety of things, but mainly not washing hands or having etiquette.

“This is an unusual spike for the past week. And it's maybe because of the cold snap that we had, everyone is cooped up together during cold weather,” said Corpuz.

Symptoms of the virus include fever, fatigue, headaches, and sore throat. Doctors urge anyone experiencing these to seek medical care. Doctors say if you haven't already, get a flu shot.

Flu season typically runs from October to roughly March or April. It’s important to get that vaccine, especially infants six months and older and elderly.