Cases of flu among people aged 65 and older have increased by almost 25 per cent over the last week, new figures show.
On Tuesday, the Health Protection Surveillance Centre (HPSC) published the latest figures for respiratory illnesses – including influenza – up to the week ending December 20th.
According to the body, there were a total of 3,548 cases of the virus last week, up on the 3,284 cases the previous week.
However, while cases are continuing to rise, the picture in hospitals is more positive. There were 692 people hospitalised with the flu, a decrease on the 815 the previous week.
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In recent weeks, cases among children aged 14 and younger were the highest, accounting for about a third of total cases. However, the latest figure shows a downward trend in this age group, reducing from 1,053 to 989.
Among the older adult population, cases are continuing to increase. There were 1,251 cases among those aged 65 and older last week, up from 1,004 cases the week prior.
Concerns have been raised about the high level of infection among older adults, who are particularly vulnerable to severe illness and death from the flu.
The HPSC also published data on outbreaks of the virus, with 40 of them occurring last week. All of these outbreaks were in healthcare and residential institutions.
Current modelling suggests the flu season will peak this week over Christmas, with some hospitals reporting decreasing levels of flu prevalence among patients since mid-December.
Many hospitals will have visitor restrictions in place over Christmas in order to stem the spread of the virus among vulnerable patients and their families.
Dr Colm Henry, chief clinical officer at the Health Service Executive, said the organisation would “continue to monitor patterns closely as we head into the festive period”.
“There are a number of factors that may influence trends in the coming weeks, such as the natural increase in socialising and intergenerational mixing that occurs during the festive period,” he said.
“Vaccination uptake remains important, particularly among at‑risk groups. There is still time to get your flu vaccine and I would encourage all those eligible to avail of it. The best time to get vaccinated is now.”
As well as asking people to get the flu vaccine, the HSE is encouraging the practice of respiratory etiquette. It advises people to wash hands frequently and stay at home if unwell.
Additionally, it advises that if people are ill or have symptoms, to not visit vulnerable people and stay away from care settings.
The most recent vaccination rates, from last week, show uptake of the jab among HSE healthcare workers, children and older adults is higher than last year but still far below target levels.
