Influenza A virus subtype H1N1

The next most likely cause of a pandemic, after the flu, is to be a virus that is still unknown to science

Deaths from flu and covid rose to 48 last week, the National Public Health Organization (EODY) reported on Thursday, with an average age of 85.

Of the deceased, 40 were infected with Covid-19, while eight were infected with flu.

The declaration of a flu epidemic in Sofia is currently off the table as the number of cases is decreasing throughout the country, including in the capital, according to Health Minister Hristo Hinkov.

The flu epidemic is on the rise in Bulgaria, with three additional regions likely to announce flu school-holidays soon, including Varna, Burgas, and Pleven. Other regions, such as Yambol, Plovdiv, Gabrovo, Pazardzhik, and Sofia, are also approaching critical levels, warns Chief State Health Inspector Angel Kunchev in an interview with Nova TV.

Two more regions in Bulgaria, Gabrovo and Plovdiv, have declared a flu epidemic from Monday due to an increase in morbidity, following the earlier declaration in the Smolyan region. This has prompted the adoption of temporary measures to curb the spread of the flu.

The number of patients received at fever clinics in medical institutions in China has witnessed a decline since New Year's Day. However, there is a possibility of a rebound in the COVID-19 infection epidemic in China in January, Chinese health authorities said on Sunday, China-based Global Times reported.

Deputy Health Minister Irini Agapidaki has advised parents not to send their children to school if they exhibit symptoms of a respiratory infection.

The week before Christmas saw a sharp increase in cases of Covid-19, flu or flu-like symptoms and Respiratory Syncytial Virus (RSV) infections, the National Organization for Public Health (EODY) has said.

For now, it is known that it is a mysterious pneumonia that is once again ravaging the country.
Beijing says that no new virus is to blame for the chaos, and officials have told people to wear masks, social distance and stay at home if they don't feel well, while health workers attribute the increase in cases to the flu and other common diseases.

Pharmacists are urging people at high risk of contracting severe influenza to get the flu shot. This is essential, they stressed, to develop immunity before the start of the flu season, expected in mid- to late December.