Geelong residents are being warned to prepare for a potentially serious flu season, with more than 100 cases reported in the first nine weeks of 2024.
It comes as new data reveals the number of influenza cases have continued to grow since the end of the COVID-19 pandemic, particularly in children aged six months to five years.
According to the National Notifiable Diseases Surveillance System, 34,461 Australian children in that age group were diagnosed with flu in 2023, an 18 per cent jump on the 29,238 cases in the year prior.
There have been 113 cases of flu detected in Geelong this year, more than 50 per cent more than at the same time last year.
Pathology Awareness Australia ambassador Caitlin Keighley said she was concerned of a repeat of the flu season, which historically runs from May to October.
“If this pattern of increased infections and lower vaccination rates happens again this year, then we could be in for a really big 2024 flu year,” Dr Keighley said.
Children between six months and five years are eligible for free influenza vaccines, along with pregnant women, people aged over 65, those with medical conditions that put them at risk of complications or severe influenze, and Aboriginal and Torres Strait Islander people.
Flu vaccines for the coming season are usually made available from the middle of April.
