The seasonal flu will affect millions of Italians between the end of November and Christmas. Experts and Regions invite you to get vaccinated as soon as possible
Flu season has officially begun and this year it is hypothesized that the peak of the flu will fall during the Christmas holidays, when we will meet indoors, often in large groups, and the passage of the famous respiratory droplets will be favored. The alarm was raised by virologist Fabrizio Pregliasco, according to whom they will eventually be registered at least 15-16 million cases in Italy in the 2025–26 flu seasonwith a long wave that could reach 20 million in the worst case scenario.
The first viruses have already begun to circulate in autumn, with the most intense phase is expected between the end of November and the month of December and the highlight at Christmas. This is told by the data that promptly arrives from the southern hemisphere, starting with Australia, where for the third consecutive year there has been a heavy season in terms of influenza and respiratory viruses.
This year, as anticipated in recent weeks, we will find ourselves having to deal with influenza strains A/H3N2 And B/Victoriacapable of partially evading the immune defenses and therefore more contagious, succeeded in causing it in Australia alone a 50% increase in hospitalizations in two weeks. Also making the situation even more complex are the respiratory syncytial virus and the SARS-CoV-2with the latter no longer following a true seasonal rhythm but tending to fluctuate in waves every 5–6 months.
Influenza 2025: peak at Christmas
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The combination of cold, closed environments, conviviality and travel creates the ideal conditions for viruses to run. We have already experienced it in recent years and in 2025 the arrival of theautumn a little early lets predict a constant rise in infections towards the holidayswhen the incidence could reach its maximum.
The data speaks clearly and the indications of the experts, with the vaccination campaign already underway, remain the same move to receive the vaccine promptlyso as to give the immune system time to respond before the peak. The Regions Italians have already begun to progressively open their vaccination agendas, immediately giving priority to those aged over 60, the frail due to pathology, pregnant women, healthcare workers, caregivers and essential service workers.
“We should get vaccinated now, next week at the latest, for both the flu and Covid, and it would be advisable for those with symptoms to get tested, especially the elderly and the most fragile”, underlined Pregliasco, guest of A Sheep Day on Rai Radio1.
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