All is quiet on the influenza front

Though Alberta is in the throes of the COVID-19 pandemic, the province's flu season has yet to begin.

The province said Thursday no lab-confirmed cases of seasonal influenza have been detected. At the same time last year, there were already 464 confirmed flu cases.

The start of flu season typically varies each year, meaning it isn't entirely unusual to not have seen a case of the virus through most of fall. But the lack of cases could suggest restrictions meant to curb the spread of COVID-19 are also working on the flu, Alberta chief medical officer of health Dr. Deena Hinshaw said.

“This does not mean that influenza is no longer a threat,” Hinshaw said. “But it is a reminder that there is hope, and that our actions can help protect each other from a wide range of illnesses.”

Hinshaw stressed that COVID-19 is more contagious than the flu, and considerably more deadly for some people.

“There is also no vaccine readily available at this time,” she said.

A vaccine is, however, available for influenza, and Albertans have been immunized in record numbers in 2020.

To date, 1,298,466 Albertans have received a flu shot so far this flu season, about 228,000 more than during the previous season.

That means about three in every 10 Albertans have received a flu shot. Alberta's record for flu shots came in 2019, when 33 per cent of Albertans were inoculated. Vaccinations became available to the public on Oct. 19.

Last year, 1,595 Albertans were hospitalized with lab-confirmed influenza and 41 died from the flu.