The B.C. Centre for Disease Control’s weekly update on respiratory illness data showed little week-to-week movement Thursday.
The slight increases in test positivity and confirmed infections seen last week for influenza, RSV and COVID-19 largely reversed themselves in this week’s data.
The number of people in hospital with COVID dropped to 165 on Thursday, which is the lowest it’s been in 2024 so far, though only narrowly.
The number of people in hospital with COVID-19 in B.C., as reported by the BCCDC in public updates in 2024, is shown. (CTV)
There were 437 new lab-confirmed COVID-19 cases across the province during the epidemiological week of Jan. 28 to Feb. 3, according to the BCCDC. That’s a decrease from 503 during the preceding week, but essentially on par with the 423 recorded the week before that.
The percentage of tests coming back positive has also fluctuated over the last three epidemiological weeks. It was 10.5 per cent during the week that ended Feb. 3, down from 11.8 per cent the week before and 10.9 pre cent the week before that.
The number of positive tests reported each week by the BCCDC is not an accurate representation of the total transmission of COVID in the province, as relatively few people qualify for lab-based testing.
However, wastewater surveillance data shows a similar trend, with concentrations of the SARS-CoV-2 virus declining or remaining relatively flat at treatment plants across the province in recent weeks.
The same can be said of influenza A and RSV at most sites, while influenza B has started to rise in some locations.
In terms of raw numbers, both influenza and RSV followed a similar pattern to COVID over the last three weeks. There were 452 new flu cases detected through testing during the week that ended Feb. 3. The week before, there were 546, and the week before that, there were 442.
Likewise, influenza test positivity was 9.9 per cent last week, 11.5 per cent the week before and 10.1 per cent the week before that.
For RSV, there were 322 new cases detected during the week of Jan. 28 to Feb. 3, down from 332 the week before, but up from 285 the week before that.
Test positivity for RSV was unchanged last week at 7.4 per cent.
