Status: 06/01/2022 15:22
Australia is at risk of its worst flu wave in years – the number of infections has been rising for weeks. Previously, protective measures against the corona also kept the flu virus under control.
In Australia, winter starts in early June, and with the colder months, the number of flu infections increases. The eastern parts of the country, in particular, are seeing the highest number of infections in years and caution is needed.
According to the Australian Department of Health, more than 38,700 cases of influenza were confirmed in medical laboratories from the beginning of the year to May 22. More than 26,000 of these infections were detected in two weeks, between May 9 and 22. For comparison: last year, laboratories registered 598 cases of flu from January to November.
Greater risk of infection, especially for young people
368 people who contracted the flu since April had to be hospitalized for treatment; 7.6 percent of these patients went directly to the intensive care unit, according to the ministry.
According to the information, the highest infection rate has been recorded in the age group of five to 19 years and in young adults aged 20 to 24 years. But children under the age of five are also at greater risk of becoming infected.
Three states plan to offer free vaccinations
The eastern states of New South Wales, Victoria and Queensland are particularly affected by influenza pandemics. All three states want to offer free flu shots. However, the Ministry of Health has already warned that it is too early to guarantee the effectiveness of existing vaccines against the flu virus in general.
However, Queensland Premier Anastasia Palaszczuk insisted on a “preventive strike” to combat the rising number of infections. The current developments are on par with the flu pandemic of 2017. At the time, more than 1,200 people had died in Australia after contracting the flu virus.
mild flu season in the corona era
According to the Robert Koch Institute (RKI), Germany also experienced a very severe flu epidemic in the 2017/2018 season, the worst in decades. Around 25,000 people died in Germany at the time, possibly as a result of the flu.
In the last two years of the coronavirus, the flu season was mild in both Germany and Australia. Protective measures taken during the pandemic also contained the spread of influenza. According to the RKI, around 14,400 flu infections were detected in a laboratory in Germany between October and May 16.