Flu arrives in Estonia
The Health Board registered this year's first flu case on Saturday. While the flu season basically did not happen in the last two years, there is not much hope for that being the case this fall and winter as European borders are open and restrictions on movement lifted.
"The flu has landed in Europe and the first case of the virus was diagnosed in Tallinn today," deputy head of the Health Board Mari-Anne Härma said.
Even though the flu sees fewer people hospitalized than COVID-19, an extensive outbreak could see the need to treat 200 people in hospitals.
"We need to count on Covid and the flu competing for hospital places," Härma said.
Flu patients also need intensive care, while patients suffering from the two viruses cannot be treated side by side because coronavirus patients can also catch the flu in which case we would be talking about a superinfection," Härma explained.
The flu season usually runs from October until May in Estonia.
Six cases of the flu were confirmed last season, with two people needing to be hospitalized. Two cases were for the flu A and four for the influenza B.
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Editor: Marcus Turovski
