Cyprus is expected to take delivery on Tuesday of 110,000 flu vaccine doses ordered by the Ministry of Health, so that vaccination of the rest of the population, including children, can start, two weeks later than planned.
The delay follows changes the World Health Organization (WHO) made to its vaccine recommendation, which affected production at most pharmaceutical companies and held up deliveries to state authorities in several European countries. Until now, only the vaccine intended for people up to the age of 65 has been available in Cyprus.
The Ministry of Health told Phileleftheros the vaccines would be received by the Purchasing and Supply Directorate and the established procedures followed. Vaccinations will be given by General Health System (GHS) personal doctors and paediatricians or at vaccination centres.
The ministry will also give 10,000 doses to private pharmacies, which were told by the importing company a fortnight ago that production problems meant their own orders could not be filled.
Who is most at risk
The WHO and the European Centre for Disease Prevention and Control (ECDC) said that although most people recover from flu without serious problems, some groups face a higher risk of complications and hospital admission. According to the two bodies, these include older people, pregnant women, young children, people with chronic illnesses and those with weakened immune systems. The WHO also listed people with severe obesity and healthcare workers, for whom it said vaccination was particularly important to protect both themselves and their patients.
The WHO urged people not to wait for the seasonal peak to protect themselves. It said annual flu vaccination remained the most important way to prevent severe illness, particularly for high-risk groups, as the start and intensity of the season cannot be predicted precisely. Prevention measures combined with vaccination help reduce the risk of severe illness and the burden on health services, it added.
Early rise in Europe
Seasonal infections have begun to appear elsewhere in Europe, and the ECDC and the WHO have already issued this season’s recommendations to national authorities and the public. Flu, respiratory syncytial virus (RSV), pneumococcus and COVID-19 are starting to circulate, with COVID-19 leading for now because it lacks the seasonal pattern of the other winter infections.
According to ECDC surveillance, visits to health services for respiratory symptoms rose in several countries but remained at usual levels for the time of year overall. In week 41, median test positivity in primary care across Europe was 4.3 per cent for SARS-CoV-2 and 3.4 per cent for flu, and 5 per cent and 4 per cent respectively in hospital surveillance. Flu remains at usual seasonal levels, with most cases type A, while RSV activity is very low.
The WHO said seasonal flu causes three to five million cases of severe illness worldwide each year and up to 650,000 deaths linked to respiratory complications.
