Madrid flu infections slow despite record first week of year

The flu situation in Madrid continues to worsen, although cases may decrease in the coming days. According to data from the Ministry of Health, the infection curve trended downward in the first week of the year, with the number of cases in the region standing at 177.93 per 100,000 inhabitants.

The peak is the highest recorded since the arrival of the pandemic, as can be seen in a chart published by the Madrid community, which compares this year to the previous two. Measures to prevent the spread of coronavirus have kept seasonal flu outbreaks to a minimum, but that has now changed.

The number of influenza cases reported through the EDO surveillance system in the first week of 2024 was 12,011, an increase of 687 cases from the previous week, bringing the cumulative number of cases in the 2023/2024 season to 37,860. The 177 cases per 100,000 inhabitants is well above the prevalence threshold of 24.95.

The evolution of influenza cases is key to understanding whether the wearing of masks will be mandatory in the Madrid Health Center for a long time, since starting this Wednesday it will be mandatory in all autonomous regions. Areas with two-week declines can eliminate this use and make it a recommendation.

Madrid Health Minister Fátima Matute believes that the trend will decrease in the coming weeks and assured that “no increase in severity or mortality has been observed”. Just a week ago, the number of cases doubled, so local governments want to wait and see the impact of returning to schools to see if the number of infections will decrease or if there will be a rebound in the coming days.