Cases of flu, RSV and COVID-19 can be seen all year round, but can reach high levels in the winter as they circulate simultaneously.
We also Other Respiratory Virus Tracking – Rhinovirus, adenovirus, human metapneumovirus (hMPV) and parainfluenza – can also peak in the fall and winter.
There are vaccines available to help protect against flu, COVID-19, and RSV, and they are available to a variety of vulnerable populations.
Staying home when you have flu or COVID-19 symptoms helps protect vulnerable people. If you must go out when you are unwell, consider wearing a mask when around other people.
Simple measures such as wiping your coughs and sneezes with a tissue, washing your hands regularly, and opening windows when meeting other people indoors can all help reduce the spread of respiratory infections.
Below is a description of important information about these winter infections. Provides information on signs and symptoms and who may be eligible for vaccination.
flu
The flu is a viral infection that affects the nose, throat, and lungs, mainly during the winter months. This is much more severe than the common cold, which usually causes a runny nose, sneezing, watery eyes, and throat irritation. Cold symptoms usually develop gradually, without causing the fever or body aches that come with the flu. Flu signs and symptoms occur very quickly and extreme fatigue is common.
The flu can lead to serious illness, especially in children, resulting in thousands of hospitalizations each winter. Older people, people with weakened immune systems, and people with certain long-term health problems are at higher risk. Last winter, there were about 8,000 deaths from the flu. – This is higher than the approximately 3,500 deaths recorded in previous years, but lower than the 2022-2023 season, when there were approximately 16,000 deaths.
For those who took up the offer, last year’s flu vaccine had a significant impact on reducing serious illness, including a nearly 40% reduction in hospitalizations for people over 65 and a 75% reduction in the number of patients aged 2 to 17.
Many people are eligible to get the flu vaccine, including:
- Anyone over 65 years old
- People aged 6 months to 65 years with certain medical conditions
- People living with people with weak immune systems
- Frontline health and social workers
- Every pregnant woman needs to protect herself, her pregnancy, and her newborn.
- All children aged 2-3 years
- School-aged children (Reception to Year 11) are offered the nasal spray vaccine through their school immunization team.
covid-19
For most people, COVID-19 is not as serious as it was at the beginning of the pandemic, but the virus is still causing serious illness, hospitalization, and death. This is especially true among people with weakened immune systems and people over 75 years of age.
It is normal and expected for viruses to change genetically over time, and the current COVID-19 variant, like previous variants, can spread easily through droplets released when an infected person coughs, sneezes or talks. The fall COVID-19 vaccine is your best defense against serious illness.
We have seen COVID-19 symptoms change over time. Many people today experience cold-like symptoms, and some may experience fever or chills, persistent cough, shortness of breath, fatigue, body aches, headache, sore throat, stuffy nose, loss of appetite, nausea, diarrhea, or changes in taste or smell. Some people report hoarseness or particularly painful sore throats associated with the newer strain. This has been referred to in the media as ‘razor throat’.
People over 75 years of age, people living in aged care homes, immunosuppressed and over 6 months of age are eligible to receive the COVID-19 vaccine.
Rhinovirus (the most common cause of the ‘common cold’)
rhinovirus It causes symptoms we commonly know as a cold. Cold symptoms appear gradually over 2 to 3 days.
Main symptoms include stuffy or runny nose, sneezing, sore throat, hoarseness, cough, feeling tired, and feeling unwell. You may also experience fever, muscle pain, loss of taste and smell, and pressure in your ears and face.
In young children, cold symptoms may last longer. You may also feel irritable, have trouble eating and sleeping, breathe through your mouth, and feel sick after coughing.
More information about the differences between colds and flu can be found at: NHS website.
R.S.V.
Respiratory syncytial virus (RSV) is a major respiratory virus common during the winter months, generally from November to February, and can be spread through coughing and sneezing.
Symptoms include coughing, wheezing, difficulty breathing, fatigue, and fever.
Although symptoms are mild for many people, RSV can cause: BronchiolitisIn infants, breathing and feeding may become difficult. You may notice your baby breathing rapidly, being noisy, anxious, or difficult to comfort. This amounts to approximately 20,000 annual hospitalizations for children under 1 year of age.
RSV can also be serious in older people, causing pneumonia and relapses of existing lung disease and other organ diseases. In the UK, around 9,000 people aged 75 and over are hospitalized each year.
The NHS vaccine has been introduced to protect pregnant women, their babies after birth and for people aged 75 to 79. It is not recommended for people over 80 because clinical trials included too few people of that age to be certain of protection.
Getting the vaccine during pregnancy reduces the risk of severe bronchiolitis by 70% during the first six months of a baby’s life.
Adenovirus, parainfluenza, and human metapneumovirus (hMPV)
These three viruses cause a wide range of cold-like symptoms.
Parainfluenza viruses are a common cause of respiratory infections in infants, young children, the elderly, and people with weakened immune systems.
Adenoviruses and hMPV usually cause mild, cold-like illnesses in people of all ages. Although it can be found all year round, it can spread more easily in the winter.
tracking these diseases
you can see our Check out our surveillance reports tracking these viruses, as well as the flu and COVID-19, here..
