Close X
Sunday, November 10, 2024
ADVT 
National

Flu season officially in Canada

Darpan News Desk The Canadian Press, 01 Dec, 2023 02:15 PM
  • Flu season officially in Canada

The Public Health Agency of Canada says flu season is officially underway in this country. 

The rate of tests that were positive for flu stayed above the agency's threshold of five per cent for two consecutive weeks.  

As of Nov. 25, 7.5 per cent of people tested for influenza across Canada were positive. 

Toronto's Mount Sinai Hospital infectious disease specialist Dr. Allison McGeer says the number of cases is climbing and there will be a lot of flu circulating in a few weeks.  

McGeer says that means now is a good time to get the flu shot, since it takes about two weeks to prime people's immune systems.   

She says the dominant strain now will be influenza A type H1N1, which is a good match for the current vaccine.  

Not all provinces and territories are reporting a five per cent positivity rate yet. For example, Public Health Ontario's latest flu surveillance report said the rate was 2.8 per cent as of Nov. 25 in that province. 

But Ontario and other provinces will soon catch up and those rates will increase, McGeer said in an interview on Friday.  

"The flu season starting now tells you that there's going to be a lot of flu at the end of December and the beginning of January," she said. 

"That's when you want to be out with your friends and doing a bunch of things and, you know, flu is capable of making that time quite miserable."

Many adults have some level of resistance to H1N1 flu strains, so it "tends to cause a lot of disease in kids, especially unvaccinated kids," McGeer said.

She added that "emergency departments and pediatrics ... take more of the pressure" during H1N1-dominant flu seasons.

Although McGeer said it's important for people to get their flu vaccines, she's even more concerned about the levels of COVID-19 that are circulating this year. 

Friday's surveillance report from Public Health Ontario showed a test positivity rate of 20 per cent for COVID-19 in that province. 

In addition to test positivity, wastewater surveillance and hospitalizations show climbing COVID-19 cases in Canada, McGeer said. 

"Just because we've stopped talking about people being hospitalized with COVID does not mean that people aren't being hospitalized with COVID," she said. 

"At the rate we're going, there will be more people hospitalized with COVID and more people dying from COVID this year than last year," McGeer said, noting that a low uptake of the new COVID XBB-variant vaccine is worrisome. 

MORE National ARTICLES

BC safety coalition to launch today

BC safety coalition to launch today
A new provincewide public safety coalition that includes community and business groups, citizens and well-known B-C retailers is set to launch today. A statement says the coalition wants governments to work together and act quickly on crime and violence issues in communities across B-C.

BC safety coalition to launch today

Sikh independence vote in B.C.sees thousands turnout amid Canada-India tensions

Sikh independence vote in B.C.sees thousands turnout amid Canada-India tensions
A second referendum on Khalistan — an independent state in India proposed by some Sikhs — was held today at the same Surrey gurdwara where activist Hardeep Singh Nijjar was shot dead in June. Sarbraj Kahlon, news director at Radio Punjab who was at the referendum site, called the latest vote a success after 65,700 people turned out in Surrey Sunday to cast ballots. 

Sikh independence vote in B.C.sees thousands turnout amid Canada-India tensions

Police watchdog asks Crown to consider charges against officers in B.C. shooting

Police watchdog asks Crown to consider charges against officers in B.C. shooting
A statement from B.C.'s Independent Investigations Office says it has submitted a report to the prosecution service for consideration of charges related to the July 2021 incident in Campbell River on Vancouver Island. It says an interaction took place between a man and police at the drive-through window of a local business, during which police fired shots and the driver of the vehicle was killed. 

Police watchdog asks Crown to consider charges against officers in B.C. shooting

Car crashes into hot dog store in Richmond, one person with critical injuries

Car crashes into hot dog store in Richmond, one person with critical injuries
Police in Richmond say a 46-year-old Burnaby woman is recovering after being critically injured when a vehicle crashed through the wall of a Richmond restaurant on Friday. The driver of the car a dark coloured Tesla -- was not hurt and R-C-M-P now say alcohol and drugs were not factors, but the detachment's criminal collision investigation team has taken over the case.

Car crashes into hot dog store in Richmond, one person with critical injuries

Premier Eby condemns rise in hate crimes in B.C. stemming from Israeli-Hamas conflict

Premier Eby condemns rise in hate crimes in B.C. stemming from Israeli-Hamas conflict
British Columbia Premier David Eby is condemning the rise in hate crimes in the province, driven by the Israeli-Hamas war. Eby says in a written statement that his office has heard "directly" about a number of acts of antisemitism, such as the vandalism of a rabbi's home and two Jewish women being threatened with violence after a rally.  

Premier Eby condemns rise in hate crimes in B.C. stemming from Israeli-Hamas conflict

Man who jumped off Alex Fraser Bridge couldn't have been saved: IIO

Man who jumped off Alex Fraser Bridge couldn't have been saved: IIO
British Columbia's police watchdog has found that officers could not have prevented the death of a man who jumped off a bridge in Delta this week.  The Independent Investigations Office of B-C says that officers responded to a call on Monday to find the man in distress and standing outside the railing on the side of the Alex Fraser Bridge.

Man who jumped off Alex Fraser Bridge couldn't have been saved: IIO