Influenza cases reappear in Newfoundland and Labrador after non-existence since June 2020 (Prostock-studio / Shutterstock)
Newfoundland and Labrador have reported their first flu cases in almost two years, with an outbreak of 75 reported cases in the Labrador-Grenfell health region.
According to the Department of Health, the group is the first in the province since June 2020. A total of 81 cases have been reported in recent weeks: 75 at Labrador-Grenfell Health, five at Eastern Health and one at Western Health.
In context, the province reported 708 cases of influenza in 2019 and 2020 – the last time data had to be shared, as no cases had been reported in the last 23 months. A spokesman for the department said weekly reporting of flu cases would resume this week.
Dr Joan McGee, a Labrador-Grenfell Health medical officer, said Monday that the province has seen a much lower spread of influenza with the spread of COVID-19 in the last two years. However, cases have been observed sporadically throughout the country over the past month or so.
“We have had a number of confirmed cases of influenza A, affecting many communities in our region,” McGee said. “We were busy with COVID-19 and there were certainly very few, if any, flu cases. But it can be quite serious.
There are a number of reasons why flu cases may decrease during a pandemic.
In October, Sherry Christian Memorial University professor of biochemistry told CBC News that measures to prevent COVID-19, such as wearing masks, are likely to limit the spread of the flu, which also means the flu could come back because of the restrictions. for public health began to rise.
Some medical experts also share the concept of “viral influence”: the idea that prevalent viruses such as SARS-CoV-2 can keep other pathogens, such as those that cause the flu, out of the public eye for a period of time.
McGee said the flu will affect different people in different ways, but could be more serious for people who are immunocompromised or have respiratory illnesses such as asthma.
But, she added, it can be difficult to distinguish the flu from COVID-19, as they share many common symptoms.
“The symptoms you can get with COVID-19 or the flu can be similar in terms of fever, sore throat, muscle aches, fatigue,” she said. “Then there are some people who have the disease with very mild symptoms, and some people who have no symptoms at all.”
The number of flu vaccines has declined during the COVID-19 pandemic, McGee said. Influenza vaccines are available in clinics throughout the province. (Emily Fitzpatrick / CBCNEWS)
If a person feels unwell, McGee said, he should fill out the province’s online COVID-19 self-assessment form to see if he qualifies for a PCR test to determine if the disease is COVID-19.
“If your symptoms can be managed at home, you really don’t need to go to the emergency room or the clinic to be assessed for a viral illness that is likely to occur,” she said.
Influenza vaccines are also widely available in clinics across the province, McGee said, as the number of influenza vaccines administered declined during the pandemic.
Read more from CBC Newfoundland and Labrador
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