Runny nose, cough, fever - this year the flu wave starts much earlier. The statistics prove it. And the typical cold months are yet to come.
Rostock (dpa/mv) - Since the beginning of October, significantly more cases of flu have been reported in the north-east than in the comparable periods of the two previous years. From October 3rd to November 20th, the State Office for Health and Social Affairs registered 573 influenza infections. The number of reports is significantly higher than the 2021/22 season, in which only three infections were reported in the same period, the state office said on request. In the 2020/21 season there were only six cases.
For the week from November 14th to 20th of this year alone, reports of 202 influenza infections were received from all rural districts and urban districts; in the week before there were 164. Most infections (79) are currently in the group of children and adolescents between 5 and 14 years.
According to Lagus, the flu wave is starting much earlier this year than in previous years. Experts also pointed out that the number of influenza infections had been low in the two previous years due to the corona-related wearing of masks and keeping your distance.
Proven influenza cases are statistically recorded separately from the beginning of October to mid-April, the usual flu season. According to the reports from the doctors involved in the early warning system, there were 2,670 doctor consultations per 100,000 inhabitants in the 46th calendar week because of a cold, cough and fever. This corresponds to a total of 43,023 visits to the doctor for acute respiratory diseases.
Health Minister Stefanie Drese (SPD) recently campaigned again for a flu vaccination, which is particularly important in the coronavirus pandemic. "In particular, older people over 60, the chronically ill and pregnant women should be vaccinated because they have an increased risk of severe flu," Drese emphasized in October. The annual flu vaccination is the best way to protect yourself and others from a possible influenza infection.
