Cases of respiratory infections continue to rise. As the latest report of the surveillance system of the Carlos III Health Institute showed this Thursday, the increase in incidences continues, especially of the flu, with A positivity percentage of 46%A much higher figure than last week’s 27% and which also surpassed the weekly peak reached in the previous season, which was 36%.
What is Epidemic Evolution?
According to the latest report of the Acute Respiratory Infection Surveillance System (SIVIRA), the epidemic has been steadily increasing in week 52 (December 25 to 31). Cases are increasing in primary care, with a flu rate of 438.3 cases per 100,000 residents (249.4 cases per 100,000 hours the previous week); And cases are also rising in hospitals (9.5 cases per 100,000 inhabitants compared to 5.9 cases last week), where there is also an increase in Covid cases, albeit slightly more.
Global rate of acute respiratory infections in primary care (ARIs) increased at week 52 952.9 cases per one lakh populationThis is much higher than the 533.4 cases per one lakh population recorded in early December, compared to 921.7 the previous week.
What is the demand for doctors? Are masks required again at the health center?
Estimates predict that the seasonal epidemic will not peak for at least two or three weeks, which is why the Spanish Society of Family and Community Medicine (Samphyce) has proposed resuming the “extraordinary” protective measures used during the epidemic. How andMandatory mask use in primary care centres To reduce infection or establish separate spaces in the waiting room. Further, they ask the population to visit these centers only when they need medical treatment.
The Federation of Associations for Defense of Public Health (FADSP) also claimed yesterday that Strengthening health systems, and especially primary care, the incidence of respiratory infections has increased these days in Spain and is creating a “saturation situation in health centers”. The organization also believes that the obligation to wear masks in health centers should be reintroduced, as well as evaluating the possibility of doing the same in public transport, although it emphasizes that “this current reality shows that the health administrations have not carried out the necessary work. steps.” Actions needed to prevent and/or combat this situation, which is not new, as it happens every year at this time, and therefore, is fully expected.
Can I get the vaccine if I have already passed the infection?
Vaccination is recommended even if the infection has passed, recalls Jaime Jesus Pérez Martín, president of the Spanish Association of Vaccinology (AEV). «If you have already recovered from an acute episode, if you still have a cough, you can get the vaccine. Logically, you get vaccinated for other potential strains, not the one you’ve been through. If you have H1N1, you will be vaccinated against H3N2 and the Victoria strain of influenza B.
Influenza A, however simply called, has two types, as the president of AEV explains: “H1N1 and H3N2. “Then there’s influenza B, which also has two types, Victoria and Yamagata, although only the first circulates now.”.
What strains are circulating?
According to a recent report from the Acute Respiratory Infection Surveillance System, of the 1,003 influenza viruses identified with type/subtype information, 923 are type A (98.9%) and 10 are type B (1.1%).. Of the A viruses, 154 are A(H3) and 423 are A(H1)pdm09 (26.7% and 73.3% of subtypes).
Perez Martin suggests that A(H1)pdm09 is pandemic H1N1: “We had the H1N1 strain before the 2009 pandemic, but it was completely replaced by another new, pandemic strain, which was from 2009. They’re still babies. The 2009 strain. .
Should you always get tested for the virus?
Pérez Martin points out that “to know what’s going on epidemiologically, and that’s what we have for that. Then, If it’s a healthy person that you’re not going to treat specifically, it’s less useful there. If they’re in a risk group and you can treat them, whether it’s an antiviral against flu or Covid, the utility is greater. It is true that universal curiosity affects all of us, but it is more useful when you are going to use different methods of treatment. For this reason, the president of the Spanish Association of Vaccinology points out that “if a curative treatment is prescribed in the end, its usefulness is very low. Moreover, the tests themselves will not tell you what type of influenza A it is, and the same thing happens with Covid. Is: If the test doesn’t tell you what type you’re experiencing, it’s not terribly useful, unless you go for different treatments.
In the last week of 2023, sales of antigen tests in Spanish pharmacies exceeded one million units, three times more than those recorded in the first week of December of the previous year, according to data collected by consulting firm Equia.
When do we have to go to the doctor?
Experts remember that most of these are respiratory infections No medical treatment is required and resolves after a few days without specific treatment other than common painkillers. The most affected people should rest for a few days, limit contacts and/or stay at home until they feel better and if they are high-risk individuals, such as the elderly, pregnant, immunocompromised patients or patients with chronic pathologies; Or if the evolution of the infectious condition is unfavorable or presents signs of seriousness, recall from the Spanish Society of Family and Community Medicine (SemFYC).
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