COVID-19 Infections in Spain Has Crossed the Official Epidemic Threshold, Positivity Rates Are Now 24.1 Percent
Nikhil Prasad Fact checked by:Thailand Medical News Team Oct 18, 2026 1 hour, 6 minutes ago
Spain is experiencing a renewed surge in respiratory infections, with national surveillance figures showing that overall infection rates have crossed the country's epidemic threshold. COVID-19 is emerging as the leading respiratory virus detected through sentinel surveillance, raising concerns about continued transmission and its impact on vulnerable populations.
Spain's respiratory infection rates exceed the epidemic threshold as COVID-19 positivity reaches 24.1 percent amid
continued hospital surveillance concerns.
Respiratory Infections Exceed Epidemic Threshold
According to Spain's Carlos III Health Institute (ISCIII), the nationwide incidence of acute respiratory infections has reached 493.8 cases per 100,000 inhabitants, exceeding the epidemic threshold of 400 cases.
COVID-19 accounts for a substantial proportion of detected infections, with an estimated incidence of 118.4 cases per 100,000 inhabitants.
This
Thailand Medical News report highlights surveillance findings indicating that SARS-CoV-2 remains considerably more prevalent than influenza and respiratory syncytial virus (RSV).
COVID-19 Positivity Remains Elevated
Sentinel surveillance data show that 24.1 percent of respiratory samples collected in primary care tested positive for SARS-CoV-2.
COVID-19 positivity remains substantially higher than influenza at 3.5 percent and RSV at zero percent.
While Spanish officials claim that the XFG lineage is the dominant circulating SARS-CoV-2 variant, genomic surveillance identifies the PJ.2.1 variant and its various new sub-lineages are possibly driving the surge and even disease severity.
Hospital Surveillance Reveals Concerning Findings
Among patients hospitalized with severe acute respiratory infections, COVID-19 test positivity increased from 21 percent to 22.5 percent.
The estimated COVID-19 hospitalization incidence also increased slightly, from 1.7 to 1.9 cases per 100,000 inhabitants.
Clinical surveillance findings among hospitalized COVID-19 patients recorded:
-Pneumonia: 17.9 percent.
-Mortality: 7.5 percent among tracked hospitalized cases.
These findings require careful interpretation because hospitalized patients represent a more vulnerable population than the broader community.
Continued Surveillance Remains Essential
Although authorities currently characterize overall clinical intensity as low, elevated positivity and increasing hospitalization indicators demonstrate that COVID-19 continues circulating significantly across Spain.
The findings reinforce the importance of protecting vulnerable individuals, maintaining respiratory surveillance, and monitoring changes in disease severity. Importantly, the epidemic threshold applies to overall acute respiratory infections rather than COVID-19 alone.
The official s
urveillance findings are available through the ISCIII SiVIRA weekly report.
https://docsivira.isciii.es/Informe_semanal_SiVIRA_202640.html
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https://www.thailandmedical.news/articles/coronavirus
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