Lots of covid but no flu

[Doimatter]

www.independent.co.uk/news/health/flu-cases-covid-england-phe-latest-b1805124.html

How can there be no flu. It can't just vanish because of covid. So could it be that people are getting flu rather than covid. So are the covid numbers even right? 🤔

Maybe social distancing works better at protecting from flu than it does COVID?

Flu is less contagious.
More hand washing, less close contact, social distancing, places where people closely mix are closed.
Higher uptake of flu vaccine
There has been far fewer cases of RSV which causes bronchiolitis in babies each winter. It’s not just flu.

I haven't had a single cold this winter, or tonsillitis which I usually catch.

Social distancing, increased hygiene and less people wandering around when sick I reckon. Less chance of passing on the less transmissible infections.

Also there is a completely different swab test which can be done for flu which hospitals do alongside other swabs such as covid.Covid isnt being marked down when it’s flu. It’s not flu.

Viral interference? Plus SD, etc etc. No travel. Loads of reasons.

We’re all distancing, and wearing masks, and washing our hands. Trolley handles in supermarkets are being sanitised. Chip and pin machines are being sanitised. Surfaces are being sanitised. Everything is actually cleaned now with spray that kills off the flu virus before it infects us.
It’s not to say there’s no flu now, but how gross were we all before, seriously.
I haven’t even had a cold this winter and I’m a teacher!

So could it be that people are getting flu rather than covid. So are the covid numbers even right?

Still with this shit? The covid test tests for covid. If you have flu, you will get a negative covid test.
For fucks sake

If it's actually flu that's causing all these hospital admissions and excess deaths then there's a really nasty strain of it going around. One that hasn't been detected, despite testing for flu. The numbers catching this unidentified flu and getting really sick from it also mirror the numbers of people testing positive for SARS-COV-2. And thousands of doctors have been prepared to lie on death certificates that people have died of covid-19 rather than flu. Yes, that all sounds possible

How are people still saying this ??? Isn’t it obvious with all the social distancing / closing of schools / closing of pubs and restaurants/ no soft play / people working from home that of course flu wouldn’t spread ????

Oh for gods sake this has been done to death
Flu transmits in the same way as any other virus because of all of the Covid measures in place it’s suppressing flu transmission as well
If people are getting positive Covid tests it’s because they have Covid not the flu
It’s pretty bloody obvious

I am aware the GPs surgery have also been more diligent in ensuring vaccination for flu and also pneumonia. I wasn't even aware there was a vaccine for pneumonia until had a check up and nurse said might as well have that while you are here too. Being positive for antitrypsin alpha 1 deficiency I will take all the help I can get to avoid being seriously ill

I think people should be required to pass some sort of assessment before being allowed to post on the internet

Social distancing.
Masks.
Handwashing.
Lock downs.

Any of those likely to have had any impact ya think OP?

There may well have been flu cases, but not confirmed with a test. If 10% of tests come back as positive for covid-19, then other tests were from people symptomatic with something else.

Haven’t we had this before! Pretty obvious really... the current measures prevent the transmission of flu as its less contagious than Covid.

@Multicover

I think people should be required to pass some sort of assessment before being allowed to post on the internet

Social distancing.
Masks.
Handwashing.
Lock downs.

Any of those likely to have had any impact ya think OP?

But it says there's been 0 flu surely there must be some. I'm not saying there won't be less but to be 0 seems odd.

I've not had any sort of bug/cold in over a year

Neither has my daughter who's a grubby bugger

Nor my DH who's in school almost every day

(We all usually get 2/3 a year)

The article explains why there are no cases, are you expecting someone to say something different?

How do you link that to covid numbers being wrong? Too how or too low, what do you mean?

The r rate for COVID with mitigation is about 3 without mitigation is probably about 5. The average flu has an r of about between 1.4 and 1.8 so with all the Covid mitigation such as mask wearing and social distancing flu isn't able to replicate easily.

But it says there's been 0 flu surely there must be some. I'm not saying there won't be less but to be 0 seems odd.

IN THE SAMPLES TESTED. Not that there hasn't actually be a single case of flu!

It is samples tested. Not everyone ends up being tested.

It proves that social distancing works to prevent illness.

I did read somewhere that the scientists that develop the flu vaccine are struggling to develop a vaccine for the next season as there has been less flu about to know which strain to use in the next vaccine.

We're testing everyone for COVID at first sign of symptoms. This isn't the case for flu. Me and my whole office got struck down with bad flu a couple of years ago, all very ill at home but none of required hospital so no testing done for flu.

I know right, it’s almost as if people’s behaviour, hygiene and social interactions have been completely different this past year....

@rosie39forever

The r rate for COVID with mitigation is about 3 without mitigation is probably about 5. The average flu has an r of about between 1.4 and 1.8 so with all the Covid mitigation such as mask wearing and social distancing flu isn't able to replicate easily.

The R rate for covid is now below 1, I'm confused by your figures.I thought the natural rate was about 3 when the pandemic first started

@ChasingRainbows19

Flu is less contagious. More hand washing, less close contact, social distancing, places where people closely mix are closed. Higher uptake of flu vaccine There has been far fewer cases of RSV which causes bronchiolitis in babies each winter. It’s not just flu.

I agree with this.

They've been carrying out sentinel testing for influenza and simply not finding it.

It really isn't the case of assuming it's all covid. They've been actively looking for flu as well