However, the CDC said in its weekly report on death and disease, that the influenza season is off to a slow start. "Twenty states and the District of Columbia reported no influenza activity," the CDC said.
The only reported death so far has been a child in California. More details were not available in that case.
Flu season peaks in the United States in February and March. Influenza usually kills 36,000 people in the U.S. and more than 500,000 worldwide annually.
The flu has gotten more attention this year because of the avian strain that has plagued Asia, infecting 138 people and killing 71. Experts have said the avian strain could mutate into a human strain, causing a pandemic.
