Just when you thought that COVID-19 couldn’t get worse, after the Alpha, Beta, Gamma variants, with the Delta and Omicron Variants still rampaging through the world and causing a fourth wave, the flu mutations seem to have decided to take centre stage as well and say:
Bet.
First Florona Case in Israel
When I first saw the word “Florona” trending, I almost hoped that it was another news article about a silly antic from a Florida man or maybe a new genus of a flower, but nope, my dear Singaporeans, we have another influenza on our hands.
Patient Zero of Florona, as reported by the Hindustan Times, is a pregnant woman who was admitted into the Rabin Medical Centre to give birth. An Israeli newspaper called Yedioth Ahronth has also confirmed that the young woman was unvaccinated.
Is this for real? Bad pun, sorry.
The disease and its symptoms remain the same: both COVID-19 and the flu are viral, and they attack the upper respiratory tracts, which causes difficulty in breathing.
The pregnant woman’s case marks this as the first reported dual case, though that is contested by the fact that there have been patients with both flu and COVID-19 in the United States as early as spring 2020.
The Beilinson Hospital in Petah Tikva stated that the two infections have been showing mild symptoms in the pregnant woman.
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Not Out of the Red
Israel has experienced a surge in flu cases in the recent weeks, with nearly 2,000 people hospitalised with flu, and the numbers are continuing to rise.
A Health Ministry statement from Israel proclaimed that “the flu virus can cause serious illnesses, such as pneumonia, other respiratory complications, myocarditis and even death.”
The “twindemic” is a cause for concern.
A doctor at Cairo University Hospital, Dr Nahla Abdel Wahab, worries that the Florona will cause a severe breakdown of the immunity system as the two viruses enter the human body concurrently, which can and will exacerbate known symptoms, while making the patient more susceptible to other illnesses.
Unfortunately, this warning rings true.
In another case, an eight-year-old girl is still attached to a ventilator at the Meir Medical Centre in Kfar Saba after contracting the flu. Allegedly, she suffered from a fever and sore throat for a few days, before experiencing troubles breathing, then she was transported to the hospital for treatment.
In early December 2021, six-year-old Yosef Naim from Nevoit died from a fever in his sleep. Health experts determined that he had succumbed to myocarditis, which is an inflammation of the heart, due to flu complications.
Active Steps Being Taken
Presently, Israel has begun administering fourth vaccine shots on Friday (31 Dec), starting with individuals with already compromised immune systems.
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Following, Israelian authorities have given the green light to administering fourth booster shots for the elderly at geriatric facilities and care homes.
Mask mandates have also been reinforced, especially at outdoor gatherings with more than 50 people.
While they are wary of another wave of the COVID-19 Omicron Variant and the influenza at hand, Israel has also received its first shipment of Pfizer-Biotech’s antiviral COVID-19 pills called Paxlovid, which has been proven effective against Omicron in lab tests.
Israeli Prime Minister Naftali Bennett declared that the pills’ arrival is “an addition to our toolbox in fighting the pandemic”.
Sincerely, and with fingers crossed, we hope that it will genuinely be helpful in curbing the number of infected. One pandemic is bad enough as it is; having one less problem is always better than having another.
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