Sales of flu medicines in Russia have tripled over the past two weeks

Over the past two weeks (from November 28 to December 11) 2022, Russians purchased three times as many anti-flu drugs in pharmacies compared to the same period last year, according to a company study Tinkoff Data prepared for Vedomosti. It also clarifies that in Moscow sales of such drugs grew only 1.3 times. The Tinkoff Data study says that the company has analyzed the transactions of more than 26 million of the bank’s retail customers. The receipts included the following drugs: Tamiflu, Oseltamivir, Nomides, Influcein, Griptera, Zanamivir and Relenza.

The company did not provide absolute numbers. But, according to the Chestny Znak digital marking system, from November 28 to December 11, up to 9.7 million packages of medicines for influenza and SARS were sold in the country, which is 12% more than in the previous two weeks. The total expenses for this period amounted to 4.1 billion rubles. The largest sales growth was recorded in Kalmykia (+40%), Smolensk region (+40%) and Kabardino-Balkaria (+39%).

The incidence of SARS and influenza in Russia as of December 13 increased by more than a third compared to the previous week, according to Rospotrebnadzor. The proportion of influenza viruses is growing and, according to the latest data, is 52.5% of the total number of respiratory viruses. Swine flu (strain A/H1N1-2009), which in 2009 led to a pandemic, has already been detected in 82 regions of the country.

In early December, the head of Rospotrebnadzor, Anna Popova, suggested that the peak incidence of influenza in Russia could occur during the New Year holidays if citizens ignore preventive measures, including vaccination against influenza, coronavirus or pneumococcal infection. Mass vaccination against influenza, according to Popova, ended this week, a total of 52.2% of Russians were vaccinated.

At the same time, it is still possible to make a vaccine in the clinic. It will begin to operate in two weeks – approximately then, according to the general director of the Rassvet clinic, Alexei Paramonov, the flu incidence will peak in Moscow. According to him, given that the flu season continues until the end of March, vaccination will also avoid severe complications during the second wave, which occurs just this spring month.

As a representative of the press service of the Moscow Health Department noted, all city medical organizations are ready to provide assistance to the sick: infectious beds for adults and children have been prepared in the hospital, and a separate entrance has been organized in polyclinics for patients with symptoms of SARS and influenza.

Due to the increase in the incidence of influenza, on December 13, the chief sanitary doctor for St. Petersburg already decided to introduce a mask regime in hospitals and social institutions, stop the planned hospitalization of children and establish mandatory temperature checks for visitors to educational institutions. Vedomosti sent a request to Rospotrebnadzor regarding the prospect of introducing similar measures in the capital.

At the same time, the incidence of coronavirus in Russia is also growing. From December 5 to December 11, 11% more new cases were detected than a week earlier. According to the operational headquarters, on December 14, 7,532 cases of coronavirus infection were registered in the country. The largest number of them was recorded in Moscow and St. Petersburg – 1847 and 973, respectively.

During the coronavirus pandemic, Russians have become accustomed to regularly replenishing their first-aid kit with antiviral agents, especially in the autumn-winter period. Despite the available stocks of medicines, the increase in the incidence of acute respiratory viral infections and influenza in November-December naturally caused additional demand for antiviral agents, said a representative of the Chek Index analytical resource of the operator of fiscal data OFD Platform. According to a representative of Chestny Znak, the existing stocks of medicines will last for more than 10 months and they are regularly replenished.