Health Minister Alexandru Rafila will hold a press conference on Thursday, starting at 3:00 p.m., where he will announce whether Romania will be declared a flu epidemic, given the sharp increase in the number of cases over the last period.

HotNews.ro will broadcast Rafila’s statements live.

The health minister said on Wednesday that there is an algorithm that leads to the declaration of epidemic status: a three-week progressive increase in cases of at least 20% in each subsequent week and a rate of isolation of influenza viruses exceeding 10% of the total.

• “No one should understand that restrictions and obligations will be introduced.
• It is about the measures taken at the level of medical institutions to limit visits to the hospital during the development of this epidemic situation, on the one hand.
• On the other hand, measures related to the observance of measures to protect medical personnel and patients in medical units are being strengthened, in particular, the use of masks in the medical unit, epidemiological screening to avoid exposure to people with respiratory viruses. come to work There will also be a set of general recommendations for the public – anyone with a cold, including children, should not return to the community until the symptoms disappear, because the most important thing is to be isolated and not transmit a respiratory infection. “, – said Rafila.

The Minister of Health clarified that this is not an unusual situation, given the two years during which the circulation of viruses has been slowed down by pandemic measures and the population is “less immunologically prepared”.

Rafila also said that emergency room visits should be reserved for moderate to severe cases. “With mild forms, you need to consult a family doctor, in no case do not crowd into emergency medical care wards, because there is also a risk of getting sick with something else if you stay there for a long time, and on the other hand, access to those who really need radiological research and treatment adapted to the more serious form of these viruses,” said the minister.

The last time an influenza epidemic was declared in Romania was in February 2020, for the second year in a row.

“Return to normal life”

The medical director of the Matei Balsch Institute, Adrian Marinescu, says that the number of respiratory infections will continue to be high in January and February, and this situation represents a “return to normal” after three years of the new coronavirus pandemic.

• “I expect January and February to be of the same intensity. The balance will probably come sometime from March when we have more flu cases, but things will definitely look better.
• The discussion of the epidemic is strictly based on epidemiological criteria. It depends on the number, it depends on the time interval during which the flu cases appear,” said Marinescu, quoted by Agerpres.

What seems important to me, he adds, is that whether or not there is a flu epidemic, we will still have SARS-Cov-2 and other viruses.

• “The number of respiratory infections will definitely be high, as the statistics show. It is clear what we will have in these two months.
• The good part is that the method I use to prevent these respiratory infections is the same whether I’m talking about the flu, SARS-CoV-2, or other viral infections, with the difference that with the flu, I have strength to get anti-flu vaccines and do effective prevention, as I can do with SARS-CoV-2. I can’t with other viral infections,” Marinescu added. (Photo: Dreamstime.com)

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• A wave of respiratory infections fills hospitals: “We are approaching the number of patients who turned to the rapid peak of the pandemic” / Why we have such an aggressive season