This respiratory virus season in Ontario is expected to be less difficult for the province and its hospitals than last year, though good luck will largely depend on vaccination levels, the fitness chief medical officer said Monday.
Ontarioians six months of age and older can now receive a loose flu shot and an updated COVID-19 vaccine.
People six months and older can get their new COVID-19 vaccine if it’s been six months since their last vaccine dose or if they’ve shown infection. The shot targets the XBB variant of COVID-19, the “family” of Omicron variants circulating lately. Dr. Kieran Moore said.
It’s a good idea to get both the new COVID-19 vaccine and the flu shot, he said.
“If you need to separate them, that’s fine, but I wouldn’t let it go anymore,” Moore said.
“Since we anticipate flu season to begin in the next few weeks, it’s actually more productive to get those two vaccines as soon as possible if we need to make the winter season and holidays the safest and healthiest. “
Last fall and winter, higher degrees of COVID-19, influenza and respiratory syncytial virus (RSV) hit hospitals, especially children’s hospitals, with what fitness officials called a triple threat.
So far this year, the effect of viruses appears to be more staggered, Moore said.
“We’re fortunate that the flu [season] hasn’t started, so it hasn’t affected the fitness formula or fitness of Ontarians yet,” he said.
“The overall COVID numbers have gone down, but they’re still pretty active in the community, but the effect on hospitals is waning week over week and we expect that as long as our immunity doesn’t weaken or wane, this will continue. “
The latest updates on the Ontario Public Health report show that COVID-19 levels in wastewater testing have been declining for the past few weeks, but the percent test positivity is increasing.
Last week, about 400 more people were hospitalized with COVID-19, Moore said, and about 40 more people received intensive care.
Flu season, even if it hasn’t happened yet in Ontario, will likely be a long one, Moore said, and influenza A and B strains will cause the virus to circulate well into spring.
“In the Southern Hemisphere, they found that there was a clever combination between the vaccine and circulating strains, and strong coverage against severe outcomes such as hospitalization and death,” he said. “So we’re expecting a smart game. “
However, RSV season is already underway, with another 100 people hospitalized with the virus, up from just over 20 a few weeks ago, Moore said. About a portion of those patients are children younger than 4 years old, and most of the rest are older than 65 years old.
Health Canada has approved an RSV vaccine for seniors 60 and older, and Ontario publicly budgets for those vaccines for other people this age who live in long-term care homes, nursing homes and nursing homes licensed to provide dementia care services.
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