This undated photo shows the Centre for Health Protection of the Department of Health, Hong Kong. - Photo: HKSAR Government
HONG KONG: Hong Kong largely escaped the 11-week winter flu season, with far fewer critical cases thanks to increased vaccination efforts, the Centre for Health Protection (CHP) announced on Thursday (March 27).
However, healthcare experts estimate that a bout of summer flu is likely strike the city this year, probably from July or August, and are urging residents to maintain personal hygiene.
CHP Controller Edwin Tsui Lok-kin said the conclusion that the winter flu season is over has been supported by several indicators, including a reduction in positive respiratory samples and fewer admissions to public hospitals.
He also noted a decline in flu outbreaks in schools and residential care facilities, which have averaged just 12 cases over the past two weeks.
Tsui explained that the recent outbreak was primarily driven by the type A H1 virus, which corresponds with the seasonal flu vaccine.
The outbreak resulted in 488 critical cases among adults and 330 deaths.
About 66 per cent of the critical cases were unvaccinated, Tsui added.
He pointed out that the rate of severe cases this season is lower than those recorded during the 2018/19 winter flu season, which also featured the same virus strain.
Specifically, the severity of cases has decreased by 20 per cent in adults and 60 per cent in children compared to pre-Covid 19 pandemic levels.
Despite this positive trend, Tsui warned that a longer but less severe summer outbreak could be on the horizon.
He said that from 2010 to 2019, Hong Kong experienced five summer influenza outbreaks, each ranging lasting from six to 18 weeks, suggesting a 50 per cent chance of a recurrence this summer.
Tsui added that the Covid-19 virus has become more active with the rising temperature, as evidenced by a higher positivity rate in the past two weeks. - China Daily/ANN
