COVID-19 and influenza activity is on a steady decline in Manitoba, with hospitalizations and new cases down significantly for the third week in a row.
There were seven people hospitalized for COVID-19 from Jan. 15 to Jan. 21, according to the latest surveillance data in the province. In the previous reporting week, there were 28 hospitalizations.
ICU admissions due to severe cases also fell from six to three over the same period.
The total number of virus-related deaths rose by 15 in the latest surveillance report, compared with nine the previous week and 25 the week before that.
There were only 59 new cases of COVID-19 detected in the latest report, a more than 50 percent drop from 122 in the Jan. 8-14 report. However, these numbers are considered significantly lower due to the limited testing offered by public health. The province does not track home test results.
The weekly rate of positive tests for COVID-19 fell to 11.3% from 12.3% in the previous report.
Flu test positive drops below 1%
As for influenza A, the main flu strain this season, the number of cases detected in the current surveillance week is 10, compared to 18 in the previous week.
A total of two people were admitted to hospital with flu-like symptoms, with no intensive care cases, which was identical to the previous week. Two additional deaths were attributed to the flu in the January 15-21 report compared to one the previous week.
The current weekly influenza A test positivity is 0.8 percent, compared to 1.9 percent a week ago.
The national rate is 1.3 percent.
Other respiratory viruses also continue to circulate, but the rates of positive tests for and detection of respiratory syncytial virus (RSV) have also decreased.
The number of detected RSV cases in the latest report was 105 (down from 131) and the rate of positive tests was 8.3 percent (down from 8.7).
Effluent monitoring data shows persistent COVID-19 activity in Winnipeg and Brandon, but at lower levels.
The next reporting date is February 3.
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