Why did it happen? The Omicron variant flu spread rapidly through Europe last year, causing the death of nearly 12,000 people in 22 countries, including Italy and Sweden. It is characterised by a different shape, making it easier to evade the vaccine and spreading quickly. It can lead to death by “craniocellular” pneumonia which can lead to cardiac arrest and heart failure.
Who are the dead? Between 1 March and 27 March 2018 there were 6,235 deaths in Italy, 2,746 in Spain, 2,257 in France, 1,740 in Germany, 1,531 in the Czech Republic, 1,378 in Poland, 950 in Hungary, 785 in Turkey, 540 in Poland, 255 in Greece, 240 in Sweden, 220 in Portugal, 210 in Croatia, 185 in Romania, 190 in Denmark, 190 in Hungary, 135 in Ukraine, 140 in Portugal, 136 in the Czech Republic, 130 in Austria, 122 in the Netherlands, 120 in Serbia, 101 in Hungary, 98 in Portugal, 94 in France, 93 in the Czech Republic, 94 in Germany, 83 in Hungary, 76 in the Netherlands, 66 in Italy, 63 in Greece, 59 in Portugal, 53 in Germany, 52 in Poland, 51 in Serbia, 49 in Macedonia, 48 in Croatia, 42 in Croatia, 41 in Spain, 40 in Croatia, 37 in Poland, 34 in Bulgaria, 28 in Romania, 27 in Croatia, 25 in Turkey, 23 in Cyprus, 21 in France, 21 in Portugal, 16 in Croatia, 16 in Hungary, 15 in the Czech Republic, 14 in Spain, 13 in Greece, 12 in Romania, 11 in Serbia, 10 in Lithuania, 10 in Greece, 10 in Austria, 9 in Turkey, 8 in Greece, 8 in Bulgaria, 8 in Croatia, 7 in Portugal, 7 in Hungary, 6 in Spain, 5 in France, 5 in France, 3 in the Czech Republic, 2 in Greece, 2 in Croatia, 1 in Poland, 1 in Romania, 1 in Italy, 1 in Russia and 1 in Germany.
What are the symptoms? It causes fever, vomiting, chills, diarrhoea, weakness, weight loss, weakness, weakness, more fevers, vomiting, more chills, diarrhea, weakness, dehydration and shock.
What can we do to avoid it? Prevent it by staying home when you’re sick, with a doctor or the Red Cross.
What are the costs? It costs £1.8bn a year to treat people with swine flu every year, and takes one in five of those in contact with someone with it to hospital.