COVID, flu cases drop slightly in Sask. as RSV cases rise

The number of lab-confirmed COVID-19 and influenza cases in Saskatchewan both dropped slightly in the last two weeks of 2022, but the province saw an increase in cases of RSV.

According to the Ministry of Health’s biweekly report on respiratory illnesses, the period from Dec. 18 to Dec. 24 saw 326 lab-confirmed COVID cases and 122 lab-confirmed influenza cases. The period from Christmas until the end of the year saw 302 COVID cases and 69 influenza cases.

The number of cases of both viruses have been declining steadily since the start of December.

While the number of cases dropped, the rate of positive COVID tests increased slightly in the last week of the year, rising to 6.7 per cent from 5.8 per cent the week before. During the same period, only five per cent of influenza tests came back positive, down from 7.7 per cent the week before.

RSV (respiratory syncytial virus) cases rose slightly during the last two weeks of 2022, with 176 cases confirmed from Dec. 25 to Dec. 31. That’s up from 167 in the previous week, and 153 the week before.

RSV also had the highest test positivity rate of all three illnesses, with 14.6 per cent of lab tests yielding a positive result.

Between Christmas and New Year’s Eve, 92 people were admitted to hospital due to COVID-19 and eight were admitted to intensive care units. That’s a slight drop from 103 hospitalizations between Dec. 18 and 24, though ICU admissions remained unchanged.

During the last week of 2022, the ministry reported 14 hospital admissions due to influenza and 47 due to RSV.

“The majority of respiratory virus hospitalizations continue to be COVID-19, followed by RSV,” the ministry said.

Three people died due to COVID and two due to influenza between Dec. 25 and Dec. 31, the ministry reported. From Dec. 18 to Dec. 24, seven people died due to COVID and one due to influenza.

The Ministry of Health confirmed Dec. 22 that Saskatchewan had set a single-year high with 821 COVID-related deaths. According to the data released Friday — which included updated numbers from previous weeks — there were another 16 COVID deaths since Dec. 17.

Many in Saskatchewan are not keeping up with the recommended vaccinations for COVID-19, the ministry said.

“With the exception of Regina, all areas of the province have less than 50 per cent of their population up to date for COVID-19 vaccines,” the ministry’s report read.

According to the ministry, just 46 per cent of adults aged 50 and older have had more than one booster dose. Of those aged five and older, only 21 per cent have rolled up their sleeve for a booster dose in the past six months.

“Having a COVID-19 booster in the last six months reduces the risk of a COVID-19 death … over four times compared to those without a recent booster dose,” the ministry wrote.

The BA.5 strain and its sublineages remained the most common forms of COVID-19 in the province, accounting for 93.9 per cent of detected variants. BA.2 and BA.4 made up four per cent and 1.4 per cent of detected variants respectively.

In addition, the ministry said, the last two weeks of 2022 saw the Omicron sublineage XBB.1.5 detected for the first time in Saskatchewan.