Flu and COVID-19 infections claimed many lives in New Brunswick in December and continue to put significant pressure on the province’s hospital system.
According to the latest weekly update released by Public Health on Wednesday, the province recorded 1,549 new COVID-19 infections between Dec. 18 and Dec. 31. Of these cases, 1006 were confirmed using a molecular test.
During the same period, 54 people were admitted to hospital, including four in the intensive care unit, due to the virus. This number does not include people who are infected but hospitalized for another reason.
In two weeks, COVID-19 has caused 15 additional deaths. According to public health data, this brings to 740 the number of people killed by this disease since the start of the pandemic.
Influenza activity in the province also remains high.
Between December 11 and December 17, public health authorities recorded 711 infections in the province, bringing the number of confirmed cases to 3,538 since the start of the flu season.
During the same period, influenza caused 9 deaths and was responsible for 134 hospitalizations.
It is in zone 1, the Moncton region, where the highest number of infections (177) has been recorded. Activity in the Fredericton and Saint John area was also high, with 122 and 90 cases, respectively.
The latest influenza activity report also reported five new influenza outbreaks, in “nursing homes or other facilities.”
“So far this season, 27 influenza outbreaks and 206 ILI outbreaks have been reported,” the document reads.
Of the province’s 352 schools, 12 reported outbreaks of ILI between Dec. 11 and Dec. 17.
A school is considered to have an outbreak of influenza-like illness when that school has an absenteeism rate greater than 10% due to influenza-like symptoms.
worrying
Dr. Ghislain Lavoie, outgoing president of the New Brunswick College of Family Physicians, describes the situation as concerning. The impact remains considerable on hospitals.
First, the number of influenza infections is much higher than during the previous influenza season. Worse, the infections also seem to be more severe. Last year, five New Brunswickers died from the flu. This year, 39 people have already died of the disease.
“The situation is worrying because the symptoms of these diseases seem to be more serious than before, whether for the flu or the respiratory syncytial virus, he explains. Not only have the numbers increased, but people seem to be much sicker than last year or before COVID-19.”
According to Dr. Lavoie, the increased severity of symptoms and the death rate might potentially be explained by a prior infection with COVID-19.
Some studies suggest that COVID-19 might lead to a weakening of the immune system.
“We have seen that there are many people whose immune system is weakened up to eight months following being infected with COVID-19, he adds. Since there has been a loosening of sanitary measures and everyone has come together over the summer, there has been an increase in COVID-19 cases and it fits with this eight-month period, which might explain only the severity of the symptoms we observe.”
Dr. Lavoie is therefore asking New Brunswickers to adopt the wearing of a mask, one of several measures that might offer some respite to hospitals in the province which badly need it.
Acting Chief Medical Officer Dr. Yves Léger was unavailable to comment on the latest respiratory virus figures.
As early as December, Public Health urged New Brunswickers to take steps to reduce the risk of contracting respiratory illnesses, including ensuring their COVID-19 and flu vaccines are up to date. Citizens were also encouraged to reduce their contact during the holidays, to wear a mask when going to crowded indoor public places, to stay home when sick and to wash their hands regularly.
“This advice is still relevant as we know these viruses are still circulating in our communities,” a Public Health spokesperson said in an email.
