'Flurona': Woman Diagnosed With COVID-19 And Flu Virus Simultaneously

In a rare case, a woman in Israel was found to be infected with both seasonal flu and COVID-19 at the same time, a condition the experts are calling "flurona."

The two infections were found in the patient, who was admitted to Rabin Medical Center, a private hospital in the Israeli city of Petah Tikva, The Times of Israel reported. Though unvaccinated, the woman, who just gave birth, is said to be in good condition.

Though "double infections" are rare, a similar case wherein a patient got infected with both flu and COVID-19 had earlier been reported in Queens, New York.

Professor Arnon Vizhnitser, the director of the hospital’s gynecology department, told the news outlet the woman was diagnosed with both viruses “as soon as she arrived."

"Both tests came back positive, even after we checked again,” he told Hamodia. "The disease is the same disease; they’re viral and cause difficulty breathing since both attack the upper respiratory tract," Vizhnitser added.

The woman had mild symptoms, and has since been released from the hospital. However, the Israeli Health Ministry is presently examining the case. They are yet to determine whether the two viruses combined may cause more severe illness, added reports.

This comes as Israel witnesses a sudden surge in the cases of influenza across the country for the past few weeks. Health officials estimate many other patients have also come down with both bugs, but have not been diagnosed. Israel has also confirmed 1,371,629 COVID-19 cases till Dec. 29, 2021. There have been 8,243 deaths so far, according to the World Health Organization (WHO).

Vizhnitser said no cases of flu among pregnant or birthing women were reported last year. "Today, we are seeing cases of both coronavirus and the flu that are starting to rear their head," he added.

According to WHO, it is possible to catch both diseases at the same time. "The most effective way to prevent hospitalization Covid-19 and influenza is vaccination with both vaccines," the statement on WHO’s website reads.

This comes as experts flagged the emergence of the Delmicron COVID-19 variant, the twin spikes of Delta and Omicron. This name has been derived by combining the coronavirus' Delta variant and the Omicron variant. Several cases of Delmicron have been reported from the U.S. and the U.K. over the last few days.

At present, according to the Centers for Disease Control and Prevention, the rapidly spreading Omicron variant is now the dominant COVID-19 strain, representing 73 percent of sequenced cases.