Cough-Cold and Flu

ATLANTA  — Has the 2016-2017 influenza season already peaked?

A little more five weeks into the season, and the Centers for Disease Control and Prevention on Friday reported the national weighted average of patient visits for influenza-like illness for the week ended Jan. 7 dropped slightly from 3.3% to 3.2%. For the last 15 seasons, the average duration of a flu season has been 13 weeks, the CDC reported.

DEERFIELD, Ill.  — The latest Walgreens Flu Index issued Thursday recorded sharp upticks in several U.S. markets, including those markets in Utah, Mississippi, Hawaii and Puerto Rico.

ATLANTA  — Incidence of influenza is elevated in all but one of 10 HHS Surveillance Regions for the week ended Dec. 31, the Centers for Disease Control and Prevention recently reported. The end of the year marked the third week influenza activity was above the national baseline level of 2.2% as activity levels continue to climb.

There were several pockets of high influenza activity, including throughout New York City, Puerto Rico and 10 states  (Alabama, Georgia, Louisiana, Missouri, New Jersey, New York, Oklahoma, Oregon, South Carolina and Utah).

PITTSBURGH  — Mylan on Monday acquired the cold-fighting Cold-Eeze brand from ProPhase Labs in a deal valued at $50 million.

LAS VEGAS  — Dave Challis, RB VP innovation, is bringing RB's Healthier Tomorrow Challenge to CES through Indiegogo in an effort to bring to bear RB's industry expertise, business connections and mentorship to the kind of technology innovators eager to create the next industry disruptor.

WASHINGTON — The results of the 2016 National Institute on Drug Abuse and University of Michigan’s Monitoring the Future survey released earlier this week determined the percentage of teens using over-the-counter cough medicine containing dextromethorphan to get high remains at 3%.

When first reported by Monitoring the Future in 2006, teen OTC cough medicine abuse was at just under 6%.