Influenza Update N° 474

Overview

^{Published 08 May 2024 | For reporting week 17, which ended 28 April 2024}

Influenza

• In the Northern Hemisphere, influenza activity continued to decline in most countries. Elevated activity is being reported in Central America and the Caribbean, due primarily to influenza A viruses, and in Eastern Europe and Western Asia, due primarily to influenza B viruses.
• In the southern hemisphere, countries in South America reported elevated influenza activity, with mainly influenza A viruses detected. Some countries in Southern Africa reported elevated and increasing activity from prior weeks, with both influenza A and B viruses detected.

 

SARS-CoV-2

• SARS-CoV-2 activity, as reported from sentinel surveillance in 70 countries/areas/territories that met inclusion criteria, is low overall, but remains elevated in some countries in Western Africa, Western Asia, Southern Asia , and South East Asia. Increases in activity have been reported in countries in Northern Africa, Western Asia, Southern Asia, and South East Asia.

WHO encourages countries, especially those that have received the multiplex influenza and SARS-CoV-2 reagent kits from GISRS, to conduct integrated surveillance of influenza and SARS-CoV-2 and report epidemiological and laboratory information in a timely manner to established regional and global platforms. The guidance can be found here https://covid.comesa.int/publications/i/item/WHO-2019-nCoV-integrated_sentinel_surveillance-2022.1.