Nikhil Prasad Fact checked by:Thailand Medical News Team Oct 23, 2026 46 minutes ago
Lithuania is recording the highest SARS-CoV-2 test positivity rate among EU and EEA countries reporting solid sample volumes in mid-October 2026. According to aggregated ECDC and WHO sentinel surveillance data for week 41 covering 5th to 11th October, 22.6 percent of primary care swabs tested positive for the virus.
Lithuania recorded the highest SARS-CoV-2 sentinel positivity rate in the EU/EEA at 22.6 percent during week 41 of 2026
This marked a 6.9 percentage point increase from the prior week and stood well above the EU/EEA average of 15.9 percent. The finding comes from a network that collected 681 specimens in Lithuania and places the country at the top of the European ranking for that week.
Sentinel Testing Reveals Strong Community Circulation
Sentinel systems sample patients with respiratory symptoms who visit general practitioners, providing a more reliable picture of virus circulation than routine clinical testing alone. The 22.6 percent positivity rate in week 41 indicates that SARS-CoV-2 is circulating widely among people seeking care for acute respiratory illness. Influenza positivity remained low at 0.9 percent in the most recent available Lithuanian sentinel data, while respiratory syncytial virus activity stayed minimal. These patterns suggest the current rise is driven primarily by COVID-19 rather than seasonal influenza or RSV.
National Incidence Data from Weeks 41 And 42
The National Public Health Centre under the Ministry of Health reported that the combined incidence of influenza, acute upper respiratory tract infections, and COVID-19 stood at 553.2 cases per 100,000 inhabitants in week 41. In week 42 from 12 to 18 October the figure eased slightly to 538.6 per 100,000. During that week Lithuania registered 145 confirmed COVID-19 cases, down from 154 the previous week, while influenza cases rose from 70 to 82. Three people were hospitalized with COVID-19 and one death was recorded in an individual aged 80 to 89 who had chronic conditions and was unvaccinated. This brought the seasonal total to three COVID-19 deaths. Vilnius County recorded the highest regional rate at 694.5 per 100,000 while Panevėžys County reported the lowest at 411.7. No municipality reached the epidemic threshold of 1,500 cases per 100,000.
Public Health Implications
The combination of elevated sentinel positivity and continued low-level hospitalizations shows that COVID-19 is spreading actively in the community even as overall reported case numbers fluctuate. In this
Thailand Medical News report the data highlight the value of integrating primary care sentinel testing with broader syndromic surveillance.
With colder weather approaching and indoor gatherings increasing, sustained monitoring through week 42 and beyond will clarify whether the current positivity trend plateaus or accelerates further. Early detection through sentinel systems remains essential for guiding targeted protection measures for vulnerable groups.
References:
https://erviss.org/
://www.ecdc.europa.eu/en/publications-data/european-respiratory-virus-surveillance-summary-erviss">https://www.ecdc.europa.eu/en/publications-data/european-respiratory-virus-surveillance-summary-erviss
https://nvsc.lrv.lt/lt/uzkreciamuju-ligu-valdymas/uzkreciamosios-ligos/gripas-1/sergamumo-duomenys/
https://data.who.int/dashboards/covid19/circulation
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https://www.thailandmedical.news/articles/coronavirus 
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