As the holiday season rapidly approaches, it’s important to remember that we are also now heading into peak season for respiratory illnesses like RSV (respiratory syncytial virus) and, of course, influenza, aka the dreaded “flu.” According to projections by the Centers for Disease Control and Prevention (CDC), the 2025-26 flu season will likely be moderate across all age groups, based on historical trends and expert analysis. The previous season was classified as a high-severity season across all ages the first time that’s happened since 2017-18. Flu season typically begins around late September or early October, which is generally considered the ideal time to get vaccinated. From there, cases increasingly accelerate until hitting peak flu between December and February. Some years, infections can occur as late as May. Flu symptoms typically surface within a couple of days, including fever, chills, dry cough, body aches, headaches, stuffy/runny nose, shortness of breath, and fatigue. Without question, the best thing you can do to protect yourself and minimize its symptoms if you do contract it is get the annual flu shot, which allows protective antibodies to develop in your body within two weeks of vaccination. This season, all flu vaccines in the United States are trivalent (three-component) vaccines, which are designed to protect against three main groups of circulating flu Type A and B viruses: an A(H1N1) virus, an A(H3N2) virus, and a B/Victoria lineage virus. The flu vaccine is available to anyone ages 6 months and older, and CDC studies have shown that vaccination reduces the risk of contracting the illness by about 40 to 60 percent among the general public. For certain vulnerable populations, vaccination is particularly crucial given the risk of severe illness, hospitalization, and even death. That list includes pregnant women, young children, adults ages 65 and older, and those with serious health conditions like cancer, heart disease, HIV/AIDS, diabetes, asthma, and kidney disease. Every year, thousands of children are hospitalized with severe flu, according to the CDC. Here at the Wright Center, we take flu vaccinations very seriously. We provide flu shots at all of our locations throughout Northeast Pennsylvania. To schedule an office visit that includes a vaccination, call 570-230-0019 or go online to use the express scheduling system at TheWrightCenter. org. Meanwhile, numerous local pharmacies offer free flu shots to customers with health insurance, and a number of local employers provide flu vaccinations as a free service to their workers. One last thing that I’d really like to stress is that the vaccines are safe and do the work necessary to spare you and your loved ones the severest effects of the flu. As an early holiday gift to yourself, go and get a shot as soon as possible! Henry Novroski, D. O., is a family medicine physician at the Wright Center for Community Health.
https://www.thetimes-tribune.com/2025/11/20/the-wright-medicine-flu-vaccines-among-the-keys-to-a-healthy-holiday-season/