Last week, all monitoring areas of the Centre for Disease Prevention and Control (SPKC) and all age groups recorded a sharp increase in influenza incidence. Furthermore, residents have been actively vaccinating this year, having used 90% of the procured vaccines to date, according to data from the SPKC and the Ministry of Health (VM).
This autumn, the state purchased 1.9% more influenza vaccines than last year – a total of 133,120 doses. So far, 119,905 residents have been vaccinated, meaning 90% of the vaccines have been used.
Minister of Health Hosams Abu Meri (JV) announced on Wednesday that an additional 6,000 vaccine doses have been ordered. According to him, vaccination has been more active this season than usual. For comparison, during the same period last year, 109,828 people had received the influenza vaccine.
The proportion of positive influenza samples reached 18.1% last week, significantly exceeding the epidemic threshold of 10%.
Last week, 18% of all outpatient doctor visits were related to respiratory infection symptoms,
compared to 22% the week before. This means that nearly one in five patients sought medical care due to an acute respiratory infection, the SPKC explains. Among these patients, the number of those with influenza symptoms has increased sharply, with an incidence rate of 344.2 cases per 100,000 inhabitants – 2.7 times more than the previous week’s 125.3 cases per 100,000. Last week, influenza was clinically diagnosed in 231 patients, compared to 87 the week before.
Although influenza incidence has increased across all age groups, it has been detected most frequently in children under 14 years of age. Among children, influenza was recorded in 1,057.4 out of a total 1,267.9 cases per 100,000 inhabitants.
The highest influenza intensity was observed in Jelgava, followed by Jūrmala, Riga, and Gulbene municipality.
Last week, 234 patients with severe acute respiratory infections were hospitalized, a significant increase compared to the previous week’s 161 hospitalizations.
Of these hospitalized patients, 46.2% were seniors aged 65 and above.
Ten of them required intensive care.
Since the start of the influenza season, no deaths have been reported among patients with confirmed influenza or suspected influenza infection.
Testing of hospitalized patients also shows a sharp rise. Of 507 tested patients, influenza was confirmed in 127 cases — 25% of those hospitalized with severe acute respiratory infections — significantly higher than the previous week’s 17.3%.
Type A influenza was confirmed in 124 patients, while three patients were found to have type B influenza – the first B-type cases this season among hospital-tested patients.
In the National Microbiology Reference Laboratory (NMRL), influenza viruses were confirmed in 60 out of 332 tested samples last week (18.1%), compared to 9.1% the week before.
Meanwhile,
the share of positive Covid-19 samples increased to 6.3%, up from 4.8% the previous week.
Hospitals admitted 33 new Covid-19 patients, with a total of 66 patients receiving treatment for confirmed infection; for 37 of them, Covid-19 was the primary diagnosis. Two deaths associated with Covid-19 infection were also reported.
According to the SPKC, wastewater monitoring data similarly show a moderate increase in the virus concentration in several areas.
The Centre also notes that influenza circulation continues to rise across Europe. According to the World Health Organization’s European region data, influenza indicators in 15 countries exceed the epidemic threshold, with A(H3N2) currently the dominant strain. It is spreading widely and is increasingly detected, especially among children and seniors.
More severe influenza cases are more common among seniors, individuals with chronic illnesses,
pregnant women, and young children.
The SPKC reminds that vaccination is the best protection against severe influenza – immunity develops within 10–14 days, and vaccination remains beneficial even during an epidemic.
The SPKC website provides a list of healthcare facilities where patients in risk groups can receive state-funded influenza vaccination if their family doctor’s office has run out of vaccines.
To reduce the risk of infection, residents are advised to avoid crowded places, regularly ventilate rooms, practice respiratory hygiene, wash and disinfect hands frequently, and wear surgical masks or respirators in public spaces, especially individuals in high-risk groups.
The National Health Service reminds that during an influenza epidemic, home visits by family doctors to influenza patients are covered by state budget funds if the registered patient lives within the doctor’s primary service area. These patients only need to pay the state-mandated co-payment of €2.85.
As reported, the SPKC has declared the start of the influenza epidemic as of Tuesday, the 9th of December, based on monitoring data provided by the NMRL.
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