Overview
- The latest ISCIII bulletin for Dec 15–21 reports 192.6 primary‑care influenza cases per 100,000, a modest week‑on‑week decline, while hospitalizations hold at about 9.2 per 100,000.
- Experts expect the infection peak to fall during the Christmas holidays and caution that gatherings could drive a rebound afterward.
- Emergency and hospital services report mounting pressure and limited bed availability, with the highest impact in young children and older adults.
- Among hospitalized influenza patients this season, 19.9% developed pneumonia, 4.5% required ICU care and 3.9% died, according to ISCIII data.
- A more transmissible H3N2 subclade known as variant K is suspected to be contributing to spread internationally, with Spanish confirmation pending, as authorities urge vaccination for vulnerable people and reserve antivirals for hospitalized or high‑risk patients.