Influenza in Alberta: Cases remain low, no new deaths reported for second week

No Albertans died from influenza this week according to the latest data, while only 35 new cases were reported.

The death toll this flu season remains at 116.

In-hospital deaths as well as deaths in community settings reported by first responders are included in that number, while data for seasons prior to 2021-2022 only include hospital deaths.

HOSPITALIZATIONS

This season, 2,055 Albertans have required hospital care because of influenza. There were 11 new admissions since the last update.

This season has the second-highest number of hospitalizations in 14 seasons.

The Calgary zone has had the most patients requiring hospital care, with 766, followed by the Edmonton zone’s 585.

Of the 11 new admissions between March 5 and March 11, 73 per cent were 30 or older. Three of the admissions were children between the ages of one and four.

To date, 212 people have required intensive care. Two new patients were admitted in this update. Both were children between the ages of one and four.

The majority of ICU patients this season have also been in the Calgary zone.

CASES

Alberta reported 35 new infections on Thursday, an increase of five compared to the week prior. New case numbers have stayed below 50 for four consecutive weeks.

According to Alberta Health data, this season has the second-highest number of cases in 14 seasons, with 8,959 infections so far. The 2017-18 flu season had the highest number of cases, with 9,115.

The Calgary zone has had the highest number of influenza cases in the province, totalling 3,010 so far.

The Edmonton zone has the second-highest number of cases in Alberta, with 2,600.

The Central zone has had 1,066 cases; the North zone has reported 1,590 cases, while the South zone has counted 684. Nine cases have not been assigned a zone.

Influenza A has made up 98.2 per cent of this season’s laboratory-confirmed cases.

OUTBREAKS AND VACCINATIONS

There have been a total of 98 outbreaks in Alberta this season. Fifty-five per cent have been at supportive-living and home-living sites. There were no new outbreaks in this update.

More than 1.3 million influenza vaccines have been administered since Oct. 17, translating to 27.6 per cent of Albertans being immunized. There are also 65,799 more people vaccinated compared to this time last year.

Of Albertans aged 65 or older, 63.8 per cent have been vaccinated for influenza, while 29.3 per cent of children between six months and four years have their vaccine.

Alberta updates its influenza data on Thursdays.