The 2019 flu season is predicted to be one of the deadliest ever — and last year’s flu strains haven’t even abated yet

Last year’s flu season never actually ended — but already new strains are hitting early and hard. Experts warn thousands of Australians will likely die this year in one of the worst flu seasons on record.

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Thousands of Australians are expected to die during a horror 2019 flu season, as cases skyrocket across South Australia.

The 2018 flu season is still claiming victims, while this year’s flu season has already hit early and hard.

The sobering news comes as research shows one in five South Australian emergency department presentations by patients in vulnerable groups, such as the elderly, could have been avoided with a trip to the GP instead.

As of April 13 this year, 5847 cases of influenza had been reported to SA Health’s Communicable Disease Control Branch, compared to 1200 in the same period last year.

One person, aged 89, has died and 215 cases required hospital admission.

People aged over 65, children, pregnant women, those with chronic diseases and Aboriginal and Torres Strait Islander people are most at risk.

Professor Robert Booy.

One of Australia’s top influenza experts, Professor Robert Booy from the National Centre for Immunisation Research, said experts were estimating about 4000 deaths nationally from the flu this year.

However, he stressed the figure was hard to compare to previous years because of big improvements in how authorities determine the flu’s role.

While 2017 was a severe flu season — more than 1100 deaths were recorded from 250,000 infections — in 2018, there were 73 deaths from 52,000 infections.

It’s not clear whether Australia’s season has come early and will peter out, or if it will be the worst on record, as some experts have predicted

Each year’s flu virus is different, but those who catch it are less likely to get it the next year.

When fewer people are infected one year, rates tend to skyrocket the next.

Prof Booy said the 2018 flu season never technically finished, a phenomenon he had “never seen” before.

And because not many people were infected, fewer developed residual immunity, which could be why such extraordinary numbers have already been detected this year.

Most Australians still don’t get the flu jab, despite the fact it reduces the chance of getting sick by 60 to 70 per cent.

Childhood immunisation rates are much higher, which has the added benefit of stopping the virus spreading to parents and grandparents, and around childcare centres.

“We’ve got better vaccines than we’ve had, but they’re still far from perfect,” Prof Booy said.

Pharmacist Greg O'Keeffe administers the flu vaccine to a patient. Picture: Stewart McLean

There are several misconceptions about the flu vaccine, which has to be altered each year to respond to the constantly mutating virus.

“When you get a flu jab, you’re not going to catch the flu because there’s nothing live in the vaccine,” Prof Booy said.

The State Government brought forward its flu management timeline this year in light of the explosion of cases.

The rollout started in early April instead of from the 29th, as planned.

People aged 65 and older have started receiving free vaccines, which are also being distributed for children aged under five and other vulnerable groups. Health Minister Stephen Wade said about 90,000 children would get a free vaccination.