"‘Smart Thermometers’ Track Flu Season in Real Time"

Kinsa's new smart thermometer claims to be able to track the flu season faster and more accurately that official statistics can.

This year has been a severe flu season because of the widespread nature of the flu as well as the predominant strain, H3N2, which is known to be more deadly. Despite this, the number of child and teen deaths due to the flu so far is this year is still far lower than the 2014-2015 flu season during which H3N2 also predominated. This may be because past H3N2 heavy seasons have induced a high percentage of immunity among the population, reducing the lethality of the disease in those who are encountering it for the second time.

What Kinsa's smart thermometer claims to do is to track the spread of the flu through children's population with their new smartphone attachment. There is a bubbles game on the display which will make taking the child's temperature much easier. The FDA has found that it is indeed more accurate and faster than other measures such as Google's Flu Trends which was shut down after missing the peak of flu season some years ago. Kinsa's smart thermometer won't have the issue of being thrown off by flu news coverage.

https://www.nytimes.com/2018/01/16/health/smart-thermometers-flu.html

~Scarlett