Once again, still no influenza in Alberta

This week’s Alberta Health Services influenza report still shows no laboratory confirmed cases in the province.

Dr. Deena Hinshaw, chief medical officer of health, has said the number of lab tests done this season for flu are more than ever before.

The report says 1,530,446 Albertans have had the influenza vaccine this season which is counted from about September 2020. That is roughly 148,000 more than at this stage last year.

In the South zone, which includes Medicine Hat, 96,310 people have had the influenza vaccine. That is nearly 2,000 fewer than a year ago.

Last year by mid February, across the whole province, there had been 5,927 lab confirmed cases of influenza A and B and 25 deaths. In the South zone there had been

483 cases of influenza A and B, and four flu-related deaths.

Other recent years when there has been a high death toll related to influenza are: 2015 when by the middle of February there had been 78 deaths in Alberta, 2017 when there were 43 deaths and in 2018 there were 69 deaths.