The findings by researchers at Columbia University Mailman School of Public Health are published in the Journal of Infectious Diseases.

The use of public health measures like face masks and social distancing has declined substantially since the 2020/2021 flu seasons, although not yet to pre-pandemic levels. To what extent the flu might reassert itself in the U.S. this winter likely hinges on how much these behaviors continue.

"In the short term, measures to control the spread of the coronavirus will likely continue to suppress the number of influenza infections, but after these measures are relaxed, with greater population-wide immune susceptibility to influenza could lead to a large outbreak," says senior author Sen Pei, Ph.D., assistant professor of environmental health sciences. "This year, it's more important than ever to get your flu shot. While we're rightly focused on protecting ourselves against COVID-19, we shouldn't forget about the flu, which can be fatal."

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