Flu Cases in Luxembourg Rise by 48%, COVID-19 Cases Down 13%

According to Luxembourg's Ministry of Health and Social Security, flu cases were on the rise again whilst COVID-19 cases dropped slightly during week 51, i.e. from Monday 18 to Sunday 24 December 2023.

The ministry publishes a weekly retrospective report which provides a summary of the evolution of acute respiratory infections, including COVID-19, influenza (flu) and respiratory syncytial virus (RSV).

The report highlighted the following trends for week 51: on the one hand, there was a slight decrease in the number of cases of both COVID-19 and RSV, as well as a lower COVID-19 positivity rate compared to the previous week; on the other hand, the number of flu cases increased over one week.

COVID-19 / SARS-CoV-2

The number of people testing positive for COVID-19 fell from 790 to 686 over one week, representing a decrease of 13%. The positivity rate dropped from 30% to 26%. The viral concentration detected in wastewater also decreased.

The latest sequencing data available for weeks 46-48 showed the dominance of the BA.2.86 variant (43.9%), followed by the XBB.1.9 variant (29.8%).

Flu

The number of cases of influenza (flu) reported by laboratories increased from 254 to 375 over one week, i.e. an increase of 48%.

According to the ministry, these data largely overlap with LNS sentinel surveillance which indicated high circulation of the influenza virus, RSV, rhinovirus and SARS-CoV-2.