Two new deaths caused by influenza were reported in the last week, according to INSP, in people over 65 years old. Although the total number of respiratory infections is decreasing, the cases of clinical flu continue to increase in most counties.
The National Institute of Public Health (INSP) announced on Wednesday, December 31, that two new deaths caused by the flu were recorded in the last week of reporting, bringing the total number of confirmed deaths in the current flu season to three. All three fatal cases were recorded in people over 65 years of age.
According to the INSP report, between December 22-28, 70,243 cases of respiratory infections (clinical flu, acute upper respiratory tract infections and pneumonia) were reported nationally. The number is down by 31.6% compared to the previous week, but remains 22.8% higher compared to the same period of the previous season. At the same time, the incidence remains 28.7% above the average of the last non-pandemic seasons, signaling an intense circulation of respiratory viruses.
The capital, in the top of infections with clinical flu
Regarding the clinical flu, INSP reported 12,630 cases nationally, an increase compared to the previous week and three times more than in the same week last season. The number is 4.8 times higher compared to the average of the last five seasons.
Cases of clinical influenza were reported from all the counties of the country, the most being registered in the city of Bucharest, with 1,475 cases. Cluj county follows, with 903 cases, Buzău – 739, Constanţa – 693, Prahova – 658, Bihor – 656, and Suceava, with 639 cases reported in the same period.
In the analyzed interval, 45 cases of severe acute respiratory infections (SARS) were reported, 17 less than the previous week, but above the level recorded in the previous season.
Since the beginning of the flu season, 398 cases of influenza have been confirmed by laboratory tests, most of them being determined by influenza viruses of type A. Of these, 186 cases were with influenza virus AH3, 184 with influenza virus A non-subtyped, 25 with influenza virus AH1 and three cases with influenza virus B. The analyzes carried out by the Cantacuzino Institute showed that, in all the samples of influenza virus sequenced AH3, subclade K was identified.
Regarding the deaths, two were associated with influenza virus type A, subtype H1, and one with subtype H3, all being reported in elderly people.
At the same time, INSP specifies that until December 28, 2025, 1,263,060 flu vaccinations were registered in the National Electronic Register of Vaccinations, of which over 1.23 million were administered to people eligible for compensation, including 5,920 vaccinations carried out in authorized pharmacies.
