Coronavirus pandemic has an upside in Queensland with infectious disease taking a big hit
It turns out COVID-19 has a silver lining, with other infectious diseases in Queensland taking a hit on the back of social distancing.
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The coronavirus pandemic has an upside with reported flu cases and other key infectious diseases plummeting in Queensland this year.
Queensland has recorded 5918 laboratory-confirmed cases of the flu so far this year, compared with 36,874 for the same period in 2019. Cases of rotavirus, mumps and measles, all viruses, and whooping cough, a bacterial infection spread by airborne droplets, are also significantly down on the five-year average.
University of Queensland virologist Ian Mackay said some infectious diseases had taken a big hit during the pandemic as a result of physical distancing and a huge drop in international travel.
“There aren’t many silver linings to this pandemic, but the lives saved and illness prevented is one of them,” Associate Professor Mackay said.
Flu numbers have been particularly slammed during the once-in-a-century pandemic.
The latest Queensland Health influenza surveillance report shows there have been 991 public hospital emergency department presentations as a result of the flu so far this year compared with the 2015-2019 average of 1623.
Queensland public hospitals have admitted 307 patients with flu in 2020 – about a fifth of the five-year mean of 1464 admissions.
Public hospital intensive care units have had just 28 admissions as a result of the flu in Queensland in 2020, compared with the 2015-2019 mean of 190.
“I’m sure vaccination played some role in reducing serious flu cases as it does every year, but there was something new that occurred prior to the incredibly rare obliteration of the 2020 flu season – physical distancing measures to prevent COVID-19,” Prof Mackay said.
“When you stop one respiratory virus from spreading – SARS-CoV-2 – it turns out you stop most of them and other viruses as well.”
SARS-CoV-2 is the virus that causes COVID-19.
Apart from the flu, laboratory-confirmed cases of rotavirus in Queensland have dropped to 219 this year, down from the five-year average of 746 and proven whooping cough infections have dived to 468 so far in 2020, down from the 2015-2019 mean of 948.
Queensland has recorded just six cases of measles this year, less than half the five-year average and 28 notifications of mumps, down from the five-year mean of 136 at this stage of the year.
Prof Mackay said cases of rhinovirus were still buoyant, possibly because of increased testing during the pandemic or the difficulties in enforcing physical distancing among young children.
