14. Jan 2021
In week one of 2021, one case of influenza A virus was confirmed in Pärnu County. In total, two influenza cases have been confirmed in Estonia this season through laboratory analyses, involving a single case each of influenza A and influenza B.
In the period between 4-10 January, a total of 2,596 people sought medical aid due to acute upper respiratory tract infections, of whom 20% were children. The highest number of cases were registered in Ida-Viru County, Narva, Tartu County, Tallinn, and Pärnu County.
The situation across Europe
According to the European Influenza Surveillance Network and the WHO, the intensity of the spread of influenza remains low within the European Union, as well as elsewhere in the world. The various hygiene and social distancing measures which have been implemented in order to prevent the spread of the SARS-CoV-2 virus have probably also had a role in preventing the spread of the influenza virus.
Influenza is caused by viruses from the Orthomyxoviridae family. Influenza is caused by the influenza A, B, and C viruses. Influenza A viruses have the highest pandemic potential. The symptoms of the disease include rapidly increasing fever, headache, dry cough, and/or head cold, tiredness and weakness, and muscular and joint pain. Influenza may cause serious complications, such as pneumonia or an intensifying of chronic pulmonary or cardiovascular diseases.
Influenza is an acute viral disease which spreads in the form of outbreaks; as an epidemic or a pandemic. The disease affects mainly children, but most hospitalisation cases and deaths involve the elderly, as well as those individuals who suffer from chronic diseases.