Flu Cases Falling Ahead Of Christmas, Experts Say

The magnitude of flu circulating has started to autumn successful England, latest information suggests.

The UK Health Security Agency (UKHSA) said it was encouraging news heading into Christmas, but warned nan microorganism could ever bounce backmost successful nan caller year.

The UKHSA uses a scope of different measures to show flu rates, including sample testing successful hospitals and successful GP practices.

The latest information covers past week up to Sunday pinch nan UKHSA concluding nan microorganism was circulating "at mean levels".

Similar trends are being seen elsewhere successful nan UK. Public Health Scotland said it had seen 2 weeks of cases decreasing.

The autumn successful England comes aft nan agency said past week that nan dispersed was stabilising aft respective weeks of rises.

This year's flu play started early, driven by a mutated strain of nan virus, which prompted interest astir nan unit that could beryllium placed connected hospitals.

NHS England information for nan full number of group successful infirmary is not being published this week.

But location are signs successful UKHSA's sample testing that nan numbers being admitted to infirmary are opening to fall, suggesting nan projections of grounds numbers of patients ending up successful infirmary pinch nan microorganism complete nan festive play will not beryllium realised.

Dr Jamie Lopez-Bernal, an infectious diseases master astatine UKHSA, said it was "encouraging news".

But he added: "The microorganism is still very overmuch pinch america and everyone, particularly those astir susceptible to wintertime bugs, needs to return attraction to protect themselves aliases thief not to dispersed these viruses to others.

"This is peculiarly important complete Christmas arsenic families travel together to celebrate. So if you person immoderate acold aliases flu-like symptoms you should effort to minimise interaction pinch others."

He said location were elemental steps we tin each return to protect 1 different erstwhile mixing indoors.

"Washing hands regularly and ensuring indoor spaces are good ventilated helps, and we counsel those who person symptoms and request to spell out, to see wearing a look covering successful indoor nationalist spaces. These elemental measures tin thief make a quality to trim nan spread.

"Flu is ever unpredictable, is still circulating and could bounce backmost moreover further successful nan caller twelvemonth arsenic we person seen successful past years," he warned.