41% of those confirmed to have the flu who were hospitalized in the last week were hospitalized in adult wards, 37% were hospitalized in children’s wards and 4.8% in wards for pregnant women
According to the data of the National Center for Disease Control in the Ministry of Health, as of Monday (6.2.23), 17.8% of all health insurance policyholders in Israel had been vaccinated.
The segmentation of the vaccinated according to the different age groups:
- 65 years and older – 58.6%
- 55-64 years – 26.7%
- 5-12 years – 16.5%
- Less than 5 years – 11.1%
From the beginning of October 2022 until Saturday (February 11, 23), 5,186 hospitalized patients with laboratory confirmation of influenza were reported to the National Center for Disease Control, of which 330 were hospitalized in the last week. In the last week, 41% of those confirmed to have the flu were hospitalized in wards treating adults, 37% were hospitalized in children’s wards and 4.8% were pregnant and giving birth women. According to the data, a stabilization trend in the last weeks in flu morbidity is evident.
The Ministry of Health urges the public to get vaccinated against the flu, especially men and women 65 and older and people in risk groups. The flu virus can cause serious illness, such as pneumonia, other respiratory complications, inflammation of the heart muscle and even death.
The vaccine reduces the risk of complications such as lung infections, hospitalizations and mortality. It is recommended to get vaccinated every year as the disease changes and every year a new virus appears, slightly different from the one the previous year. The vaccine this year (and every year) is produced based on a forecast by the World Health Organization which determines the expected strains that year.
Most of the influenza viruses identified so far in Israel belong to type A, and a minority to type B. In the central laboratory for viruses, two subtypes were identified among patients with influenza type A: subtype A/H1, and subtype A/H3, where subtype A /H1 is dominant so far. The composition of the influenza vaccine given in Israel includes these two subtypes of influenza A, and two lineages of influenza B.
It is important to get vaccinated even if the strains included in this year’s vaccine are the same as those that were in the previous year’s vaccine. The level of antibodies against the component strains begins to wane about six months after vaccination, with some variation according to vaccine and age group. In all the tested groups, one year later, the antibody level does not provide maximum protection.
The RSV virus in Israel
Based on data collected and analyzed by the National Center for Disease Control at the Ministry of Health, from the beginning of October 2022 until Saturday (February 11, 23), 5,401 hospitalized patients with laboratory confirmation of RSV were reported, of which 211 were hospitalized in the last week. It appears that the peak of RSV morbidity has passed.
The RSV virus causes respiratory disease especially in babies and toddlers under the age of two, where it manifests itself in bronchiolitis. The morbidity usually occurs in the autumn and winter seasons.