As millions return to work after the holiday season, the US is grappling with an alarming surge in respiratory illnesses and gastrointestinal infections - a phenomenon that experts are calling the “quad-demic.” A combination of flu - Covid-19 , RSV (respiratory syncytial virus) and norovirus (sometimes called the stomach flu) - has seen a significant uptick since Christmas, with these viruses continuing to spread across the country. Flu, RSV, Covid and Norovirus explode after holidays According to recent data, norovirus cases have reached their highest levels since 2012 and RSV hospitalisations have increased by nearly 40% in just two weeks.
As the US heads into its peak flu season, estimates suggest that 3.1 million Americans have already been affected by the flu, with 37,000 hospitalised and 1,500 dead. Covid-19 cases are also rising, with an estimated 2.
5 to 4.4 million infections between October and December, leading to thousands of hospitalisations and deaths. Experts warn that these figures will likely continue to climb in the coming weeks, particularly as the nation enters the thick of flu season.
“We will probably see increasing amounts [of infections] over the next few weeks,” said Dr Joe Bresee, an infectious disease expert. “Flu, RSV, and Covid all spread in similar ways—through respiratory droplets when someone coughs, sneezes, or talks—but norovirus is different, transmitted through contact with contaminated surfaces.” Quadruple threat The surge i.
