Economy 21 November 2024, 5:30pm

Hungary records more respiratory infections, fewer flu-like illnesses

Portfolio

After two weeks shortened by national holidays brought a brief relief to Hungary's respiratory season, the number of people seeking medical help with acute respiratory infections (ARI), including influenza-like symptoms has risen for the second consecutive week on the 46th week of 2024.

On the 46th week of 2024 (11-17 November), 178,900 people sought medical help with acute respiratory infections, including 17,900 people with flu-like symptoms, according to data released by the National Centre for Public Health and Pharmacy (NNGYK) on Thursday. The above figures mark a nearly 11.8% increase and a 2.2% drop from the 45th week, respectively.

Note that both the 43rd and 44th weeks had only four working days due to national holidays, hence the fewer number of cases.

A short-term comparison (for the last three seasons of respiratory illnesses) shows that the number of patients with ARI was higher than in the previous two respiratory seasons, while the number of people seeking medical help with flu-like symptoms was slightly higher a year ago, but lower two years ago.

The share of flu-like symptoms in ARI dropped to 10% on the 46th week from 11.4% on the 45th week, but all of the weekly ratios were the highest ratios in the past three seasons.

We also have data for ARIs and flu-like symptoms per 100,000 population, although a long-term data series is available only for the latter.

in terms of ari, the situation is better than in the previous two respiratory seasons, while in terms of flu-like symptoms this season has been worse than any of the past 14 seasons up to the 46th week.

A total of 266 samples were tested on the 46th week (down from 330 a week earlier), of which 33 came back COVID-19 positive (down from 42), i.e. they detected coronavirus in 12.4% of the samples, which compares with 22.6% a year ago when 265 samples were tested, of which 60 showed the presence of SARS-CoV-2.

As the chart below attests, SARS-CoV-2 continues to be the main pathogen in samples, with 335 positive tests (one fifth of the nearly 1,700 samples tested), followed by rhinovirus (23), influenza (5), RSV and parainfluenza (4 each).

104 people with severe acute respiratory infection (SARI) were hospitalised on the 46th week, of whom 8 (or 7.7%) required intensive care. The respective figures for the 46th week of 2023 were 161 people in hospital, and 15 (9.4%) in ICUs.

Further breakdown shows that 24 people (23.1% of SARI patients) were hospitalised with coronavirus infection, down from 37 a week ago and fewer than 110 (68.3%) a year ago.

Of the 104 people in hospital with SARI, 20 (19.2%) were aged two or younger, while 46 (44.2%) were 60 and above.

Also, 21 (87.5%) of the 24 COVID-19 patients were over 60 years of age.

A year ago, of the 161 people in hospital with SARI, 22 (13.7%) were aged two or younger, while 106 (65.8%) were 60 or older. Also, 86 (78.2%) of the 110 COVID-19 patients were over 60 years of age.

The age breakdown of people seeking medical help with ARI and flu-like symptoms are shown below.

The majority of ARI patients belonged in the 0-14 age group throughout the 'flu season' last year, while the share of people going to the doctor with flu-like symptoms was the highest in the 15-34 age group up to the 2nd week of this year when the youngest were in majority until the 40th week bar a couple of weeks towards the end. You fund a heat map in our previous article here.

Suspected pertussis cases pick up

We have whooping cough statistics only up to the 45th week but these show that the pertussis season is winding down, although the number of suspected cases did rise to 37 from 33 on the 44th week (28 Oct-3 Nov). The microbiological tests performed confirmed the clinical diagnosis in nine cases. Diagnostic tests are still ongoing in the remaining patients.

The total number of cases rose to 1,127, which is a record. Well, look at this chart.

This is how the epidemic went down, (er, up) this year:

Portfolio has previously reported in several articles that the most vulnerable group is infants. They were also the group with the highest incidence on the 45th week. In the first 45 weeks of this year, 250 of all suspected cases, almost one in four, were infants, but the prevalence in the 40-49 age group is also rather high. If we look at a wider age group of children between 0 and 14 years of age, they make up 43% of all cases this year (485 in total), while up to 19 years the share is 52.5% (588 cases).