Flu cases have ‘declined sharply’ in Canada, PHAC says

Although the flu continues to circulate across the country, it has “declined sharply,” according to a new report from Canada’s public health agency.

After previously seeing a peak in cases, most surveillance indicators of influenza are decreasing, the flu watch report, released Jan. 6 by the Public Health Agency of Canada, detailed.

Almost all indicators are within expected levels typical of this time of year, the report said.

The weekly number of influenza-associated hospitalizations among Canada’s pediatric population has also sharply declined and is now sitting within levels typical of this time of year.

Children’s hospitals across the country were mounted with pressure after an early and severe flu season hit the country and hospitalized far more kids than usual.

The last week of Nov. saw the highest number of pediatric hospitalizations for a single week in the past decade, according to Dr. Jesse Papenburg, an investigator for IMPACT, a program that monitors hospitalizations for vaccine-preventable diseases at 12 children’s hospitals across the country.

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A typical flu season sees about 1,000 kids admitted to hospital. Due to pandemic public health measures, he said last season saw only 400 and there were none the season before that.

Up to the end of November, over 700 children had been hospitalized with the H3N2 strain of the flu, which typically takes a toll on older adults.

Other respiratory viruses, including COVID-19 and respiratory syncytial virus (RSV), have also been swirling the country through flu season.

In British Columbia, the government is reactivating Emergency Operation Centres in health authorities as pressure continues to build in the health-care system.

And, the XBB.1.5 COVID-19 sub-lineage of the Omicron subvariant XBB — deemed by the World Health Organization as the “most transmissible” COVID strain yet — has also made its way into Canada.

Since Aug. 28, 2022, 534 laboratory-confirmed influenza outbreaks have been reported in Canada, according to the flu report.

A total of 54 per cent, or 290, were reported in long-term care facilities.

To date this season, 182 influenza-associated deaths have been reported.

— with files from The Canadian Press