Hong Kong’s flu season to peak in late February, jab rates still low: experts
Infection numbers will increase as residents returning from abroad bring virus back to Hong Kong, CUHK’s David Hui warns
Hong Kong’s flu season is expected to peak at the end of February and last well into March or April as more residents bring the bug back from overseas, a respiratory disease expert has predicted, while a senior health official has warned vaccination rates among young children remain worryingly low.
David Hui Shu-cheong, a professor of respiratory medicine at the Chinese University of Hong Kong, said on Saturday the flu season had yet to peak, despite the high number of infections, and he urged residents to get vaccinated.
“Many residents will return to Hong Kong after getting infected while travelling abroad and bring the disease back ... So we are not at the peak yet,” he said.
“I expect the flu season to peak at the end of February and take six to eight weeks before the number of cases falls, so that should last until March or April.”
He said most of the flu cases involved the H1N1 virus, a strain prevalent in mainland China, Japan and South Korea.
Japanese media reported the country’s current outbreak as the worst in 25 years.