There were 771 COVID-related hospitalizations reported in the state for the week ending Jan. 10, which is down from 847 the previous week.
There were also 289 RSV-related hospitalizations for the week ending Jan. 10, down from 333.
| County | Flu-related hospitalizations | COVID-related hospitalizations | RSV-related hospitalizations |
|---|---|---|---|
| Butler | 44 | 14 | 5 |
| Clark | 8 | 7 | 0 |
| Greene | 23 | 13 | 6 |
| Miami | 14 | 12 | 1 |
| Montgomery | 126 | 57 | 39 |
| Warren | 12 | 7 | 5 |
| All of Ohio | 1,383 | 771 | 289 |
ODH hospitalization data is based on the county where the person is hospitalized, not the person’s county of residence.
Doctors are continuing to recommend people to get the flu vaccine if they have not already in order to protect against getting a severe illness that might result in hospitalization.
“The best way to protect yourself from becoming hospitalized or serious ill from the flu is to receive the latest flu vaccine. It is not too late to receive your flu vaccination, as there are still widespread cases of flu throughout the United States,” said Dr. Becky Thomas, medical director for Public Health - Dayton & Montgomery County.
Dayton Children’s is also seeing fewer cases of RSV.
“So far, our numbers of overall RSV cases are markedly lower than during previous seasons,” said Dr. Michael Klatte, chief of pediatric infectious disease at Dayton Children’s.
During the 2024-2025 season, Dayton Children’s highest weekly number of reported cases was 355. This season, its highest weekly number of reported cases has been 180.
“While we’ve seen and continue to see young children hospitalized with RSV during this season, anecdotally the overall numbers are lower than they’ve been in previous years,” Klatte said.
The decline in cases is likely due to the availability of RSV immunizations, such as the maternal vaccine for people during their pregnancy and the monoclonal antibodies, which are not vaccines, for young children.
In the first RSV season with widespread availability of maternal vaccine and monoclonal antibodies like nirsevimab, RSV-associated hospitalization rates among infants were lower than in pre-pandemic seasons, according to the Centers for Disease Control.
In an analysis comparing RSV-associated hospitalization rates among infants aged 0–7 months during the 2024–25 season with those during pre–COVID-19 pandemic RSV seasons in two surveillance networks, the CDC found rates during 2024–25 were lower by an estimated 28% and 43%.
The CDC’s recent change in its vaccination recommendation schedule still includes the same recommendations for RSV, but doctors are concerned that how the recommendations are categorized now might create confusion.
“The confusion being created with the new schedules and recommendations has me very concerned. I’m concerned for the safety of our community’s children, and I’m concerned we could lose the significant progress we’ve achieved in preventing these illnesses,” Klatte said.
While RSV immunizations have been moved from the category of immunizations recommended for all children to that of immunizations recommended for high-risk groups, it is still recommended for all infants in the fall and winter respiratory season when the mother did not receive RSV vaccination during pregnancy, according to the CDC and Public Health - Dayton & Montgomery County.
“It is recommended you talk to your doctor to make sure your child has the vaccines to stay healthy,” Thomas said.
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