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CDC: Flu season getting worse, but not reaching record levels

Knox County health officials want to remind people that every year the flu is deadly, and according to data, years past have been worse than what we are seeing right now.

The Centers for Disease Control and Prevention says hospitals are seeing the highest number of patients over an eight-year span as the flu season continues to get worse.

So far this season, the CDC says 53 children have died of the flu nationwide, with six of those children being from Tennessee.

The CDC's latest flu report show a record number of hospitalizations from this year's strain.

Knox County health officials want to remind people that every year the flu is deadly, and according to data, years past have been worse than what we are seeing right now.

"Every year we have an epidemic of the flu. Every year there are thousands of cases across the country and unfortunately every year people die from the flu," said Knox County Health Department's Director Martha Buchanan.

Buchanan said this flu season just recently spiked.

"This season is compacted into a few weeks. We were kind of coasting along with number of flu visits, the number of people with flu and all of a sudden within the last two weeks it's kind of sky rocketed," she said.

While the number of pediatric deaths at 53 seems high, numbers reported by the CDC over the past 10 years show it's been worse.

During the 2009 swine flu outbreak, 288 children died nationwide. The second highest since then was between 2012-13 with 171 children flu deaths.

"The very young, the very old are the most vulnerable, and they are more likely to die, as well as pregnant women," Buchanan said.

The flu causes an epidemic every year. The CDC says the flu kills between 12,000 to 56,000 people every year.

"This year we don't know how bad this flu season is going to be until it starts to go away," Buchanan said.

Health officials are still advising people to get the flu shot. They say even if you get the vaccine and get sick, you will not get as sick as others who didn't get a flu shot.

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