Red Book Online Influenza News and Resources

Influenza Information for Health Care Professionals from the American Academy of Pediatrics (AAP)

The AAP Committee on Infectious Diseases has compiled a comprehensive list of resources on influenza prevention and treatment in children and adolescents. This news and resource page is updated frequently. AAP membership or subscriber login may be required to access some links.

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Source: Centers for Disease Control and Prevention (CDC) FLUVIEW, Weekly US Map: Influenza Summary Update. Available at https://www.cdc.gov/flu/weekly/usmap.htm

Quick Facts:

• Seasonal influenza continues to increase in most parts of the country, most notably in the South Central, Southeast, Mountain, and West Coast regions.
• Outpatient respiratory illness (fever plus cough or sore throat) is above baseline nationally for the third week and is at or above baseline in seven of 10 HHS Regions. Regions 1 and 8 (New England and Mountain) are at their region-specific baselines and Regions 2, 3, 4, 6, and 9 (New Jersey, New York, the U.S. Virgin Islands, and Puerto Rico, mid-Atlantic, Southeast, South Central, and West Coast) are above their respective baselines.
• The number of weekly flu hospital admissions reported to the National Healthcare Safety Network (NHSN) hospitalization surveillance system is increasing.
• During week 46, 4.9% of respiratory specimens tested for influenza by clinical laboratories were positive. The most commonly detected influenza virus so far this season is influenza A(H1N1).
• A total of 797 laboratory-confirmed influenza-associated hospitalizations were reported by FluSurv-NET sites between October 1, 2023, and November 18, 2023, for an overall cumulative hospitalization rate of 2.6 per 100,000 population. The cumulative hospitalization rate per 100,000 population for children 0-4 years is 3.0.
• Flu vaccination coverage estimates for children 6 months to 17 years for the 2023-2024 season as of November 4, 2023, is slightly lower this season compared with the same time last season (32.6% compared with 36.5%).
• Two influenza-associated pediatric deaths were reported to CDC during week 46. Three pediatric deaths have been reported so far this influenza season.

Learn more in the CDC’s Flu View: Weekly US Influenza Surveillance Report.  

Also of Note: CDC is providing updated, integrated information about COVID-19, influenza, and RSV activity on a weekly basis. 

AAP Recommendations for Prevention and Control of Influenza in Children, 2023–2024: Find guidance on the prevention and treatment of influenza in children and adolescents in this policy statement and technical report.   

COCA Call on 2023-2024 Recommendations for Influenza Prevention and Treatment: Watch this COCA Call, presented by AAP and CDC, to review strategies to increase vaccination rates, current health disparities in vaccination coverage, and best practices for vaccine coadministration. 

Professional Tools & Resources: To prepare your practice for the influenza season, and increase influenza vaccine awareness and vaccination rates, AAP provides the following influenza resources:   

• AAP.org Influenza home page
• Plan, implement, and promote your in-office influenza vaccination clinic  
• Promote influenza vaccination with Social Media Toolkits  
• Explore your state’s influenza immunization rate in the Interactive Vaccination Map 
• Assess weekly influenza vaccination coverage in children with CDC’s Flu VaxView 
• Check out Project Firstline for infection prevention and control resources and tools 
• Communicate with Families and Promote Vaccine Confidence 
• Visit the Red Book Online Visual Library for influenza images for use in diagnosis  

Parent-Friendly Resources:  

• HealthyChildren.org articles with information about influenza and the importance of annual flu shots: English | Spanish
• The Flu: What Parents Need to Know available in Arabic, Chinese, English, Korean, Somali, Spanish, Swahili, and Vietnamese. 
• The AAP Childhood and Adolescent Vaccine Education Series (YouTube series) features AAP member pediatricians answering common questions about children’s vaccinations and tips on finding correct information online.