Flurona threat real as cases rise

A POTENTIALLY deadly combination of influenza and Covid-19 could result in a “winter surge”, with the state already recording more than double the number of flu cases than last year, health authorities have warned.

It comes after an infectious disease expert flagged an impending surge of both influenza and Covid cases could result in more cases of the twice-as-deadly “flurona”.

“Influenza is definitely on the rise, but Covid may surge again soon because of sub variants,” University of Sydney Professor Robert Booy said.

“BA3 and BA4 are different to the previous Omicron, which is allowing it to surge again,” he said.

Professor Booy said when people were infected with influenza and Covid at the same time it became more severe.

“If you happen to have both at the same time, you can be twice as likely, as a minimum, to require intensive care or die,” he said.

Chief health officer Dr John Gerrard said there had been more than a dozen cases of “flurona” in 2022 with a majority of those cases hospitalised.

Dr Gerrard said Queensland was likely to see a “significant wave” of influenza cases, as well as the combined cases of the two viruses.

“In Queensland last year, there were just 296 confirmed cases of influenza from the entire 2021,” he said.

“By comparison, so far this year, we have seen more than 800 cases of influenza in Queensland – most of those have been in the last month and for the past three weeks the number of influenza cases has doubled every week.”

Health Minister Yvette D’Ath said that the health system always prepared for a “winter surge”.

Queensland recorded 7668 new Covid cases and eight deaths on Wednesday.