Health authorities also warn RSV, flu and whooping cough cases on the rise around Australia
A measles alert was issued for Sydney on Sunday and other airborne illnesses are on the rise, while Australia’s Covid load is relatively low after the summer’s surge of the JN.1 variant.
New South Wales Health issued an alert on Sunday morning after a woman caught measles from a child who had been diagnosed days earlier.
Continue reading...Rules reintroduced as ‘commonsense measure’ despite opposition from some regional administrations
Face masks will be mandatory in hospitals and health centres in Spain from Wednesday as the country experiences a surge in cases of flu, Covid and other respiratory illnesses.
The government decision, which was made six months after the use of masks ceased to be obligatory in health facilities and pharmacies, has been met with opposition from some regional administrations.
Continue reading...Average of 3,631 patients in hospital with Covid during Christmas week, data shows, a rise of 57% in a month
A surge in the number of flu and Covid admissions to hospitals in England is adding to a “storm of pressure” facing the health service, NHS leaders have said.
Figures released on Friday showed that in Christmas week, there were on average 3,631 patients with Covid in hospital, up 57% from the same week in November.
Continue reading...Epidemiologists say wave in north, particularly among children, may be partly caused by ‘immunity debt’
Chinese health authorities have provided the requested data on an increase in respiratory illnesses and reported clusters of pneumonia in children, and have not detected any unusual or novel pathogens, the World Health Organization (WHO) said on Thursday.
The WHO had asked China for more information on Wednesday after groups including the Program for Monitoring Emerging Diseases reported clusters of undiagnosed pneumonia in children in north China.
Continue reading...Move in England comes after detection of highly-mutated coronavirus variant that is spreading around the world
Health officials have brought forward plans for autumn flu and Covid vaccinations after detecting a highly-mutated Covid variant that is spreading around the world.
The UK Health Security Agency (UKHSA) said vaccinations would be available from 11 September in England as a precautionary measure intended to protect the most vulnerable as the winter months approach. The vaccination programme had not been scheduled to launch until early October.
Continue reading...‘Don’t mingle’ advice comes as UK Health Security Agency says scarlet fever and strep A infections continue to rise
Flu and Covid are on the rise in England, with experts stressing the importance of vaccination and warning that people who feel unwell should stay at home rather than mingling with others during the festive season.
The figures come as cases of scarlet fever and strep A infections continue to rise.
Continue reading...Crammed wards, burnt-out GPs, patients waiting hours for ambulances – the health service is at breaking point
Inside the dimly lit command centre at King’s College hospital, staff arriving for the first beds meeting of the day are greeted with a warning: the hospital is already under strain. “So, we are under pressure this morning,” the head of nursing, Naomi Hosking, informs colleagues stood around her in a semi-circle. No one registers surprise. “We’ve got a lot of patients in ED [emergency department] with little space to see new patients, so we need to get some early movement.”
It’s 8.32am and ED – maximum capacity 60 – is packed, with 61 patients inside. The oldest is 98; the youngest 30 days old. Later, that pressure will intensify: the number of ED patients – in beds, on trolleys or in chairs – will more than double to 137.
Continue reading...Data suggests hospital admission rates among children under five have almost doubled in two weeks
Parents are being urged to get their young children vaccinated against flu as data suggests hospitalisation rates among under-fives have almost doubled in England in the space of two weeks.
Data suggests the UK could face a triple whammy of respiratory illness this winter. While experts are concerned there could be another Covid wave, levels of both flu and respiratory syncytial virus (RSV) are increasing. The latter is a common winter virus that typically affects young children and can cause bronchiolitis.
Continue reading...Experts say the world will be watching as the country becomes one of the first to experience Covid and a simultaneous influenza season spike
Australia has had its worst May on record when it comes to flu cases, prompting experts to warn this season will redefine what it means to be ready for the virus.
The national disease surveillance system reported about 65,770 confirmed influenza cases in May – more than double the month’s previous record, which was set in 2019.
Sign up to receive an email with the top stories from Guardian Australia every morning
Continue reading...State’s chief health officer, Dr Kerry Chant, urges people to get flu vaccinations as 2,000 cases reported in last week
Surging cases of the flu are putting extra demand on emergency departments around New South Wales, with major outbreaks in boarding houses contributing to a doubling in cases in a week.
According to NSW Health, 2,000 flu cases were reported in the week to 7 May – up from 1,024 the week before.
Sign up to receive an email with the top stories from Guardian Australia every morning
Continue reading...Analysis: Threat failed to materialise this winter but experts say all bets off for next season
As winter approached the situation appeared perilous. Not only was the UK in the midst of a Covid pandemic, but experts feared familiar respiratory viruses could also hit hard.
“I will emphasise that actually flu could be potentially a bigger problem this winter than Covid,” Prof Anthony Harnden, the deputy chair of the Joint Committee on Vaccination and Immunisation, told BBC Radio 4’s Today programme in June.
Continue reading...Combined vaccine should be ready in time for winter infectious season in 2023, says drug firm’s chief executive
Moderna is aiming to launch a single booster vaccination that will protect against both Covid-19 and flu within two years, its chief executive has said.
Stéphane Bancel said that the combined vaccine – which will protect against Covid-19, influenza and RSV, a common respiratory virus – could be available before the winter infectious season in 2023.
Continue reading...Dr Arnold Monto says he watched as a vaccine was developed both faster and more effectively than any dared to hope – but says it’s unlikely to give ‘permanent protection’
It is likely that in the “before times”, few Americans knew that independent experts advised the US Food and Drug Administration (FDA) on the safety and efficacy of vaccines, and that the FDA usually took their advice.
Less than a year into the Covid-19 pandemic, that quickly changed.
Continue reading...The technology was viewed with scepticism before the pandemic but there is now growing confidence about its use
It is one of the most remarkable success stories of the pandemic: the unproven technology that delivered the Moderna and Pfizer/BioNTech vaccines in record time, helping to turn the tide on Covid-19. The vaccines are based on mRNA, the molecule that instructs our cells to make specific proteins. By injecting synthetic mRNA, our cells are turned into on-demand vaccine factories, pumping out any protein we want our immune system to learn to recognise and destroy.
Pre-pandemic, the technology was viewed with scepticism – a clever concept, but not guaranteed to deliver. Now there is growing confidence that mRNA vaccines could have far-reaching applications in tackling diseases from flu to malaria.
Continue reading...Councils consulted over support for measures such as vaccine passports amid warnings by senior doctors that NHS faces winter illness ‘triple whammy’
• Coronavirus – latest updates
• See all our coronavirus coverage
New evidence has emerged that the government is paving the way to implement “plan B” measures in England to combat the spread of Covid-19, amid warnings from health chiefs that a “vortex of pressures” is encircling the NHS.
In the clearest sign to date that Whitehall is actively considering additional measures, the Observer has learnt that the UK Health Security Agency (UKHSA) contacted local authorities on Friday to canvass their level of support for the “immediate rollout of the winter plan – plan B”.
Continue reading...Risk that low take-up by young will lead to crunch as older people get third shot
Health experts have warned the government that it needs to increase efforts to ensure more young adults are vaccinated against Covid-19 – as a matter of urgency.
They fear the current low take-up of jabs among 18- to 25-year-olds could lead to a pile-up of vaccine campaigns in September, when other groups are scheduled to get booster injections and also to be inoculated against influenza. In addition, they argue that vaccines also have a crucial role to play in protecting young adults against long Covid, which is now recognised as a serious problem associated with the disease.
Continue reading...Analysis: coronavirus is more contagious and more lethal than influenza, and we lack the same global protection mechanism
As England prepares to ease coronavirus restrictions further, the messaging from ministers has changed. We have reached, it seems, a tipping point in the pandemic where rules will be replaced by personal decisions. The mantra now is about living with coronavirus, much as we do with seasonal flu.
The pandemic has invited countless comparisons between coronavirus and influenza and the diseases do have some features in common. Both are contagious, potentially lethal respiratory viruses. They can spread through aerosols, droplets and contaminated surfaces. And they share some of the same symptoms in the form of fever, cough, headaches and fatigue. In the winter ahead, one challenge the NHS faces is separating the Covid patients from the flu cases.
Continue reading...In early 2020, there were bans on most social contact, international travel stopped, workplaces and schools shut. Lockdown had arrived. These policies may have limited the spread of the virus, but what collateral harms and benefits on physical health were there?
Despite recommendations to continue to seek help, normal healthcare endured severe disruption. In England, waiting lists for hospital treatment now exceed 5m, up more than 500,000 from before the pandemic. During the first wave, nearly 90,000 joint replacement surgeries were cancelled, leaving many struggling with pain. Cancer investigations and diagnoses fell and although there is no sign yet of any excess cancer deaths, this may only become apparent in subsequent years.
Continue reading...End of social distancing and mask-wearing could leave children vulnerable to common bugs
Scientists are concerned that measures to combat Covid-19 have weakened the immune systems of young children who have not been able to build up resistance to common bugs, leaving them vulnerable when mask-wearing and social distancing eventually end.
Contact with viral pathogens happens on a fairly regular basis and although it does not always lead to sickness, the exposure helps shore the immune system against the threat should the bugs be encountered again.
Continue reading...Authorities say programme will continue after finding no direct links between the deaths and the vaccines
South Korean officials refused on Thursday to suspend a seasonal influenza inoculation effort, despite growing calls for a halt, including an appeal from a key group of doctors, after the deaths of at least 25 of those vaccinated. Health authorities said they found no direct links between the deaths and the vaccines.
At least 22 of the dead, including a 17-year-old boy, were part of a campaign to inoculate 19 million teenagers and senior citizens for free, the Korea Disease Control and Prevention Agency (KDCA) said.
Continue reading...