A flu outbreak has officially started in Latvia.
Today at 7:47 AM, the Disease Prevention and Control Centre (SPKC) announced that Latvia is experiencing an influenza epidemic, with the declaration moving from Monday, 8 December to Tuesday, 9 December based on data from the National Microbiology Reference Laboratory (NMRL).
From 1–7 December, the NMRL reported a sharp rise in positive influenza samples, climbing to 18.1% from 9.1% the previous week and surpassing the epidemic threshold of 10%.
The most at-risk groups include seniors and individuals with chronic conditions, such as cardiovascular, lung, and kidney diseases; diabetes; cancer patients; those with chronic infections; and people with weakened immune systems. Influenza also poses significant danger to young children and pregnant women.
vaccination is identified as the strongest protective measure against influenza and related complications. Given that immunity develops roughly 10–14 days after vaccination and that flu activity can linger through May, vaccination remains a prudent option even during an ongoing epidemic—especially for those planning medical procedures, such as scheduled surgery or hospitalization.
For those seeking state-funded flu vaccines, the SPKC provides information on participating medical institutions (available at https://www.spkc.gov.lv/lv/valsts-apmaksata-vakcinacija-pret-sezonalo-gripu) in risk groups when vaccines are not available at a patient’s local family doctor. The list is continuously updated as vaccine supply changes.
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