Which diseases surged in 2022 and which did not appear

SA Health data shows some notifiable diseases surged in 2022, but some did not record a single case — and the potentially deadly respiratory virus RSV has started 2023 with a surge.

The potentially deadly respiratory syncytial virus (RSV) has started the new year with a surge of cases.

Respiratory syncytial virus became a notifiable disease in October 2021 and 68 cases were recorded that year.

Last year — the first full year of recording — there were 9550 cases and four deaths.

In an ominous sign, as of Friday there had been 73 cases reported in 2023, while there were just two in the first week of 2022.

SA Health told The Advertiser it is too early to tell whether this year’s infections are comparable to previous years.

“Regardless, we encourage all South Australians to be vigilant with their health and hygiene to avoid respiratory viruses like RSV,” a statement says.

“RSV can be a serious illness causing severe health complications, especially for children aged six-months and under.

“Signs and symptoms include fever, runny nose, cough and wheezing. Ear infections are common. Pneumonia and bronchiolitis can often follow, especially in infants.”

Among other notifiable diseases there was one undisputed “winner” in 2022 – novel coronavirus.

From no notifications prior to 2020, Covid hit 581 cases that year, then 12,709 in 2021 and 489,908 last year.

SA Health’s Communicable Disease Control Branch keeps a five-year and year-to-date tally for 61 diseases which must be notified when diagnosed so public health measures from mosquito control campaigns to food safety initiatives can be taken.

These include several where there are multiple variations of a disease such as hepatitis and syphilis.

A form of syphilis recorded just three cases from 2017 to 2020, then 19 in 2021 and 187 last year.

There were 82 cases of the potentially deadly Strep A after 14 the previous year when it became a notifiable disease in October.

Influenza has had mixed fortunes, partly due to hygiene measures and limits on international travel due to Covid.

There were just 40 cases in 2021 but this jumped to 12,083 last year.

In the preceding years, the numbers seesawed from 28,486 in 2017 down to 5929 the next year, spiking to 27,093 in 2019 then falling to 1583 in 2020.

In the first week of 2023, amid summer heat, there were 44 cases.

New and rare diseases made their presence felt — SA recorded its first two cases of monkeypox, while there were ten cases of mosquito-borne Japanese encephalitis after just one in the preceding five years.

Monkeypox pimple-like lesions.

A host of diseases did not record a single case including some where childhood vaccinations have made a massive difference.

These included: measles, rubella, tetanus, diphtheria, leprosy, syphilis (congenital), brucellosis and ornithosis.

Those recording five or less cases were: mumps, haemophilus influenzae B, botulism, Barmah Forest virus, paratyphoid, cholera, candida auris, chikungunya virus, listeria, leptospirosis and hepatitis A, D and E.

Those with six-to-20 cases were: Creutzfeldt-Jakob disease, haemophilus influenzae, hepatitis C (newly acquired), malaria, meningococcal disease, Q fever, typhoid fever, vibrio parahaemolyticus — and there were nine cases of “suspected food poisoning.”

Originally published as Which diseases surged in 2022 and which did not appear