Story at a glance
- A health care worker under the age of 65 tested positive for COVID-19 and the flu in Solano County, Calif.
- The patient has since recovered from the illnesses.
Health officials in the greater San Francisco Bay area have confirmed the first-known case of a dual coronavirus-influenza infection in the region, according to the San Francisco Chronicle.
The Solano County Department of Health said the patient who tested positive for both COVID-19 and the seasonal flu is a health care worker under the age of 65 with no underlying conditions, and appears to have recovered from the illnesses, according to the news outlet.
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The instance prompted health officials to urge residents to get their flu shots, wear masks in public and adhere to social distancing practices.
“We now have flu in our community at the same time we have COVID…Contracting either disease may weaken your immune system and make you more susceptible to other disease,” Bela Matyas, the Solano County health officer, told the San Francisco Chronicle.
“Getting a flu vaccine this year is more important than ever,” Matyas told the newspaper.
While there has yet to be enough research to know just how the viruses interact with each other inside a single host, a small study in New York found no difference in outcomes among COVID- 19 patients and patients with both COVID-19 and the flu.
Public health officials for months have warned a “twindemic” over the fall and winter months could overwhelm hospitals and drain critical resources.
As the U.S. heads deeper into flu season, the COVID-19 pandemic appears to be worsening in most parts of the country as more than 87,000 new cases were reported Thursday — the highest single-day total yet.
In September, Director of the National Institute of Allergy and Infectious Diseases Anthony Fauci said cases would need to be below 10,000 per day before the flu season kicks off to get control of the coronavirus outbreak in the U.S.
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