Acute respiratory infections surge in Catalonia, flu cases double among children

Acute respiratory infections increased in Catalonia in the week from December 18 to 24, especially influenza, according to data from the Health Department.   

Infections increased from 68,019 cases in the previous week (December 11-17) to 71,674 in the latest week, bringing the rate of acute respiratory infections to 909 cases per 100,000 inhabitants.   

Influenza is the most common cause of infection, accounting for 22.6% of samples, followed by Rhinovirus (17.9%), COVID-19 (14.6%) and RSV (13.2%). There are 10,077 cases of influenza, compared with 7,117 the previous week.   

The increase in influenza is notable in children, doubling from one week to the next in the 0-4 age group and more than doubling in the 5-14 age group.