Health

Flu rates declining, testing for respiratory viruses on the rise, says Henry

Published

2 years ago

January 14, 2023

Flu rates continue to decline following a sharp early peak in November and December, RSV levels remain high but are levelling off, and COVID-19 cases remain steady, Dr. Bonnie Henry said in a respiratory illness update Friday.

There’s also been a rash of cases of norovirus, which results in vomiting and fever, in community and health-care settings.

“We’re not out of the woods by any means yet,” said the provincial health officer, although Influenza A and B has dropped from a peak of 27 per cent positive tests in November to five per cent now.

Influenza A, the H3N2 virus, caused the most illness and more severe illness, particularly in children and the elderly. Another wave of Influenza B is expected later this season but is not expected to be as severe because most people have been exposed to it.

No further child deaths beyond the six revealed in early December have been detected, Henry said.

Henry said just 24 cases of the latest Omicron subvariant, XBB.1.5 or Kraken, have been identified via whole genome sequencing of positive COVID tests in the province. The variant is identified in five or six per cent of whole genome sequences, Henry said.

Ninety-five per cent of cases remain driven by the BQ.1.1, another Omicron subvariant. “Each new one that spreads, by definition, is the most infectious one to date, and we’ve seen that with XBB.1.5,” said Henry.

She said vaccines are still providing strong protection from serious illness and death, especially in those who have had the bivalent booster. Even with just two shots, people are four to eight-fold less likely to have serious illness and hospitalization compared with an individual who is not vaccinated, she said.

The province is not considering a mask mandate, as some groups are requesting, said Henry.

Broad measures such as gathering restrictions and mask mandates can’t stop all transmissions, and can take a mental-health toll, she said.

Henry said the province is doing much more testing for respiratory viruses than it ever did before.

About 1,000 PCR tests are performed on average each day, and genome sequencing is now being done on any positive COVID test from a hospital or in the community through the Canadian Influenza Sentinel Practitioner Surveillance Network in B.C. “This really gives us a sense of what strains we’re seeing in BC and if they’ve changed,” said Henry.

Wastewater surveillance, ongoing since 2020, has expanded with additional testing sites in Interior Health and Island Health. Public health is also looking at genome sequencing of Influenza A and B and RSV detected in wastewater, said Henry.

“It has not been done around the country or around the world, so this will be something that will give us a sense in the future of what types of influenza we’re seeing and where the burden of that is,” she said.

In addition, the Public Health Agency of Canada has expanded its wastewater surveillance to include Vancouver International Airport. “It’s something that we’ve been wanting to do for some time — not just on flights from China, which helps us understand what strains are circulating there, but from other places in the world, too,” Henry said

Health Minister Adrian Dix said B.C. hospitals are at 110 per cent of base bed capacity, and 87 per cent of total base and surge bed capacity.

“There’s a historically high level of people in our hospitals,” said Dix. “That was true between Christmas and New Years when compared to other seasons, and it’s true now.”

From Dec. 18-24, he said, health authorities performed 4,698 surgeries, compared to 2,574 in the same week in 2019, prior to the pandemic. “So that’s a significant and historic number of surgeries completed, even as the health system faces these challenges.”

Between Jan. 1 to 7, however, 190 surgeries were postponed, including 23 in Island Health. “A very significant number of those surgeries will be rescheduled and done very soon,” said Dix.

ceharnett@timescolonist.com

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Health

How many Nova Scotians are on the doctor wait-list? Number hit 160,000 in June

Published

17 hours ago

September 11, 2024

Anne Joseph

HALIFAX – The Nova Scotia government says it could be months before it reveals how many people are on the wait-list for a family doctor.

The head of the province’s health authority told reporters Wednesday that the government won’t release updated data until the 160,000 people who were on the wait-list in June are contacted to verify whether they still need primary care.

Karen Oldfield said Nova Scotia Health is working on validating the primary care wait-list data before posting new numbers, and that work may take a matter of months. The most recent public wait-list figures are from June 1, when 160,234 people, or about 16 per cent of the population, were on it.

“It’s going to take time to make 160,000 calls,” Oldfield said. “We are not talking weeks, we are talking months.”

The interim CEO and president of Nova Scotia Health said people on the list are being asked where they live, whether they still need a family doctor, and to give an update on their health.

A spokesperson with the province’s Health Department says the government and its health authority are “working hard” to turn the wait-list registry into a useful tool, adding that the data will be shared once it is validated.

Nova Scotia’s NDP are calling on Premier Tim Houston to immediately release statistics on how many people are looking for a family doctor. On Tuesday, the NDP introduced a bill that would require the health minister to make the number public every month.

“It is unacceptable for the list to be more than three months out of date,” NDP Leader Claudia Chender said Tuesday.

Chender said releasing this data regularly is vital so Nova Scotians can track the government’s progress on its main 2021 campaign promise: fixing health care.

The number of people in need of a family doctor has more than doubled between the 2021 summer election campaign and June 2024. Since September 2021 about 300 doctors have been added to the provincial health system, the Health Department said.

“We’ll know if Tim Houston is keeping his 2021 election promise to fix health care when Nova Scotians are attached to primary care,” Chender said.

This report by The Canadian Press was first published Sept. 11, 2024.

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Newfoundland and Labrador monitoring rise in whooping cough cases: medical officer

Published

2 days ago

September 10, 2024

Anne Joseph

ST. JOHN’S, N.L. – Newfoundland and Labrador‘s chief medical officer is monitoring the rise of whooping cough infections across the province as cases of the highly contagious disease continue to grow across Canada.

Dr. Janice Fitzgerald says that so far this year, the province has recorded 230 confirmed cases of the vaccine-preventable respiratory tract infection, also known as pertussis.

Late last month, Quebec reported more than 11,000 cases during the same time period, while Ontario counted 470 cases, well above the five-year average of 98. In Quebec, the majority of patients are between the ages of 10 and 14.

Meanwhile, New Brunswick has declared a whooping cough outbreak across the province. A total of 141 cases were reported by last month, exceeding the five-year average of 34.

The disease can lead to severe complications among vulnerable populations including infants, who are at the highest risk of suffering from complications like pneumonia and seizures. Symptoms may start with a runny nose, mild fever and cough, then progress to severe coughing accompanied by a distinctive “whooping” sound during inhalation.

“The public, especially pregnant people and those in close contact with infants, are encouraged to be aware of symptoms related to pertussis and to ensure vaccinations are up to date,” Newfoundland and Labrador’s Health Department said in a statement.

Whooping cough can be treated with antibiotics, but vaccination is the most effective way to control the spread of the disease. As a result, the province has expanded immunization efforts this school year. While booster doses are already offered in Grade 9, the vaccine is now being offered to Grade 8 students as well.

Public health officials say whooping cough is a cyclical disease that increases every two to five or six years.

Meanwhile, New Brunswick’s acting chief medical officer of health expects the current case count to get worse before tapering off.

A rise in whooping cough cases has also been reported in the United States and elsewhere. The Pan American Health Organization issued an alert in July encouraging countries to ramp up their surveillance and vaccination coverage.

This report by The Canadian Press was first published Sept. 10, 2024.

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Health

Bizarre Sunlight Loophole Melts Belly Fat Fast!

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2 days ago

September 10, 2024

Sven Eggers

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