As flu cases rise dramatically, Strang urges Nova Scotians to get vaccinated

Cases of influenza have more than doubled in Nova Scotia, according to the most recent data released by the province on Thursday.

According to the province's Respiratory Watch report for the period from Nov. 20 to Nov. 26, there are 524 new cases of influenza A and no cases of influenza B.

The previous reporting period, from Nov. 13 to Nov. 19, noted 201 cases overall.

The update noted eight deaths among people with lab-confirmed influenza for the 2022-2023 influenza season so far. The report cautioned the deaths don't necessarily mean the flu was a major contributing cause of death or hospitalization.

Nova Scotia Health and Wellness said the province is experiencing the influenza season earlier than in previous years.

"In 2014-15, which was considered to be a bad year for influenza, 39 per cent of tests were positive at the peak, week 10 of the year. Currently, 26 per cent of the tests we are running are positive for influenza," a Health and Wellness spokesperson told CBC News in an email.

"We are seeing a higher number of people with confirmed influenza this year, but keep in mind that we are doing more testing overall due to the pandemic. We are also seeing younger people being impacted." 

Dr. Robert Strang, the province's chief medical officer of health, cautions that people cannot make direct comparisons between the old numbers and this season. 

Strang, who says he is currently recovering from the flu, said the province has adopted a new testing strategy for influenza based on the work it does with COVID cases. 

"We're actually doing a lot more testing, so inherently our numbers will be higher," he said. "We're recognizing more deaths where influenza is part of a number of causes of death."

There have been 936 lab-confirmed cases of influenza A and one lab-confirmed case of influenza B so far in the 2022-2023 reporting period.

Strang said people in the province have been slow to get their flu shots until recently. He credits the vaccine with his own quick recovery from the flu, similar to how the COVID vaccine works. 

He said just 26 per cent of Nova Scotians have had a flu shot, but the uptake is significantly higher — about 55 per cent — with those over age 65. 

He said the province is opening up more appointments now that demand for flu shots is growing. 

Strang said he would like to see 80 per cent of the population receive a flu shot. 

"What concerns me the most — both for flu vaccination and same with our COVID vaccines — is that we have very, very low uptake of either vaccine in the preschool-aged children," he said.

"Those are the ones that COVID and flu are very similar in that the very young and very old are at the greatest risk for severe disease. We need parents to understand and hear it's not too late to get a flu vaccine and it's not too late to get a COVID vaccine."

Cases of influenza in Nova Scotia began to increase in October, according to provincial data.