The Pan American Health Organization (PAHO) recommends vaccinating groups at particular risk of severe influenza, including older adults, people with underlying conditions, children aged 6 to 59 months, and pregnant women. The Ministry of Health reiterated that there is still active circulation of various respiratory viruses, although influenza and RSV are the main ones.
Last Thursday, the Ministry of Health updated the figures and reported that 114 people had died from influenza by December 27, 2025. Panama continues to record high influenza circulation, according to the latest report from the Pan American Health Organization (PAHO). The report details that 85% of the deceased were not vaccinated against influenza and 92% had risk factors such as advanced age, metabolic, cardiovascular, neurological, respiratory diseases, and compromised immune systems.
In Panama, the virus positivity rate is 29.7%, the second highest in Central America, only surpassed by Guatemala (31.6%), and has been rising in the last four weeks. The document adds that in most of the Americas, influenza A(H3N2) is circulating, with the exception of the Andean region, where A(H1N1) prevails. As of last week, no new positive tests for the K variant of influenza A(H3N2) had been reported, with the number of detected cases remaining at three.
Along with immunization against respiratory viruses, personal measures should be applied, such as hand hygiene, physical distancing, mask-wearing, and staying home when sick. The sustained growth of respiratory illness is at levels close to 20% in the Caribbean and Central America. Regarding COVID-19, the positivity rate was 1.4% in the last week of the year, and the rate for Respiratory Syncytial Virus (RSV) was 23%.
Blas Armien, head of epidemiology at the Ministry of Health, asked the population to reinforce self-care measures, follow health recommendations, and promptly seek health services to reduce transmission and prevent complications. In the case of RSV, it is manifesting in young children. The report details the cases presented until the last week of 2025. However, the country is at a low transmission level, within a range set by PAHO, where Jamaica presents a moderate incidence of cases and Barbados a high transmission.
