On the eve of the end of the year, the flu epidemic that already affects at least 17 states has pressured the demand for hospital care in cities along the coast of São Paulo, such as Santos, Guarujá, Caraguatatuba and São Sebastião, and in the interior, such as Jundiaí, São Roque and Sorocaba.
In the main UPA in Guarujá, for example, daily visits to patients with flu-like symptoms jumped from 150 to more than 600 — an increase of 300%. According to City Hall, the medical staff was increased by 50% to meet the demand.
The municipal administration states, however, that the increase in care did not reflect an increase in hospitalization rates and that there is no record of deaths.
The municipal health department says it intensified the monitoring of cases to find out which virus has caused the symptoms, carrying out the collection of tests for suspected Severe Acute Respiratory Syndrome. In addition to the new coronavirus, influenza A subtypes H3N2 and H1N1 and influenza B virus circulate in the country.
The material is then sent to the Adolfo Lutz Institute, of the state government, which diagnoses Covid-19 or influenza. The city of Guarujá claims to have not received the results yet.
In Santos, three tents were set up to exclusively care for patients with flu-like symptoms, 24 hours a day. The sorting centers were installed in the central and east zone UPAs and in the M. Nascimento Júnior Sports Center, linked to the northwest zone UPA.
In December, the three UPAs have treated more than 13 thousand patients with flu-like symptoms. In the same month last year, 1,756 calls of this type were registered in the central and northwestern UPAs.
In the first week of December, 1,275 flu cases were registered in the three units. In the second week, 2,929. From the 16th to the 21st, the cases jumped to 5,173. From the 22nd to the 17th, there were 4,512.
The municipal health department of Santos states that the collection of tests for influenza is only carried out in the public network in patients hospitalized with Severe Acute Respiratory Syndrome, according to state protocol.
The city directs the elderly, pregnant women and people with comorbidities to seek UPAs when symptoms appear, due to the increased risk of complications.
The other patients are advised to manage the symptoms and seek care if there is no improvement, due to the overload on the health system.
Caraguatatuba has also observed a significant increase in patients with respiratory symptoms. In just one week, cases of flu syndrome in the UPAs rose by 53%.
Between the 13th and 19th of December, the number of calls was 3,192. Between the 20th and 26th, the cases reached 4,886.
With pressure on demand and the arrival of tourists in the summer, the municipal health department decided to increase the number of UPAs by February 2022. Two tents are also being installed in the external area of the central UPA.
In the first week of December, the units were treating an average of 275 patients per day. In the second week, that number rose to 456. Now, there are an average of 698 daily appointments.
São Sebastião also registers an increase in the attendance of patients with respiratory symptoms, such as coughing, runny nose and nasal obstruction.
From Monday (27) to Tuesday (28), there were 312 cases of this type only in the center’s UPA. In November, the same unit attended daily, on average, 24 patients with flu-like illness.
The growth in demand has also taken place in the interior of the state. In Jundiaí, 41 beds were made available, preventively, for flu patients at the São Vicente de Paulo Charity Hospital, 26 of which in the ICU.
Of the total cases, the minority tests positive for Covid-19 (7%), says the city. In the last 15 days, the demand for care by people with the flu-like illness increased by 121%. The municipal administration says that it also reinforced the number of health professionals.
In Sorocaba, the number of flu cases increased from 824, from December 6th to 12th, to 1,235, from the 13th to the 19th. Only from the 20th to the 22nd, last update of the city hall, 1,181 cases were registered.
In São Roque, Santa Casa de Misericórdia opened this Tuesday (28) an exclusive wing for the care of patients with flu-like illness.
Between December 1st and 26th, the health unit registered 1,358 visits to people with respiratory symptoms.
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