More people are currently in hospital in the UK with flu than with Covid, the first time this has happened since the pandemic began in 2019.
UK Health Security Agency (UKHSA) data showed flu admissions rose to 6.8 per 100,000 people in the week to 11 December 2022 against 6.6 per 100,000 for Covid.
The statistics have led to warnings over the impact on a National Health Service already under strain due to elderly patients ‘bed blocking’ because of the problems in social care.
People aged 85 and over have seen the biggest rise in flu admissions, with 23.1 per 100,000 people now infected compared to 10.7 in the previous week.
Children under four have also seen a surge in admissions.
Flu cases are running at a higher rate than in any week during the past four winters, said the UKHSA,
"Flu is now circulating widely and we have seen a sharp rise in the rate of hospitalisations for flu this week, particularly among the under-fives and over-85s,” said Dr Conall Watson, UKHSA consultant epidemiologist in a statement.
He urged people in vulnerable categories to get vaccinated as this is the most effective way to halt the rise in infections.
Flu patients now take up 1,162 hospital beds on average in England, up 63% in a week.
Britain’s flu vaccines are mostly supplied by Australian firm CSL Sequiris, which manufactures them in Liverpool though other firms such as AstraZeneca are also licensed.
GSK and Sanofi Pasteur are major suppliers to the US and European Union, with Glaxo recently contracting to supply the European Commission’s Health Emergency Preparedness and Response Authority (HERA) 85mln doses of its pandemic flu vaccine Adjupanrix in the event of a major outbreak.
GSK also supplies the US government and influenza accounted for US$438mln of total vaccine sales of US$5.86bn in its latest third quarter.
Shares in GSK were today down 1.5% at 1,428p.