21 December 2023 at 13:05 FHI expects significant flu activity through Christmas The Norwegian Institute of Public Health (FHI) writes in the latest weekly report that the flu wave is underway. At the same time, there are still many people who are ill with covid-19. – The incidence of influenza has been increasing for several weeks and the seasonal flu outbreak is now underway. There will probably be increasing and significant influenza activity before and throughout Christmas, and it is expected that an influenza peak will occur in late December or early January, writes FHI. People over the age of 65 or in risk groups are recommended to take a vaccine against both influenza and covid-19. – It is still important that the elderly and people in risk groups who have not yet been vaccinated take both the flu and corona vaccine as quickly as possible, says Are S. Berg, department director at the Institute of Public Health. A new variant of covid-19 can increase the spread of infection. – These (new) variants have a clear infection advantage in Norway and it is not unlikely that the infection will increase again with the emergence of the variants, as seen in Denmark, writes FHI. The incidence of RS virus has seen a slight increase in recent weeks. The number of admissions with respiratory infections is at the same level as at the same time last year, but significantly higher than in the seasons before the pandemic.
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