Hong Kong is poised to enter peak influenza season next month. The Centre for Health Protection (CHP) has therefore asked residents to get their flu shots as current vaccination numbers are low. The public health agency has also warned Hongkongers to take precautions if they are travelling abroad during the forthcoming Chinese New Year break in light of an uptick in flu cases across the region.
Influenza A makes up 90% of city’s flu cases
The Department of Health confirmed that Hong Kong entered flu season and stated that Influenza A accounted for about 90% of flu cases in the territory. Earlier this month, respiratory expert David Hui Shu-cheong, a professor at the Chinese University of Hong Kong, told a radio programme that “the winter influenza season has started in the second week of this year and it normally takes four to six weeks to peak.”
Influenza, a contagious viral infection of the respiratory system, can cause serious illness and be fatal for high-risk individuals and even healthy people. There were 797 influenza-related deaths in the 2024 flu season in Hong Kong and, according to CHP data, only about 20% of the city’s population aged between 50 and 64 have received the vaccine as of December 29, 2024.
Additionally, less than half of children aged six or under (47.7%) and individuals over 65 years old (45.5%) — two of the highest-risk groups — have been given the jab. Hong Kong’s health minister even urged schools to join the city’s flu vaccination drive after an unvaccinated four-year-old was admitted to an intensive care unit with a severe case of Influenza A and invasive pneumococcal disease.
According to flyers distributed by the CHP, although many may believe that being vaccinated last season will protect them from getting the disease, seasonal influenza strains can change from year to year and the vaccine composition is updated annually depending on the strains circulating during the season. This is why the agency recommends getting the flu shot annually to enhance protection.
Residents should be cautious if travelling abroad
For people who are travelling during Lunar New Year, the CHP also reminded them to get vaccinated as soon as possible as there has been an increase in influenza cases in Europe, North America and some parts of Asia, including Japan, Korea, and Mainland China. According to media reports, Japanese hospitals have been struggling with rising cases of influenza and beds were filled to almost capacity. The Korea Disease Control and Prevention alerted at the beginning of the year that the number of influenza-like illness cases surged to reach the highest level since 2016.
In China, although the overall numbers are below the 2024 figures and no new viruses have been detected, in the week ending Jan 12, 2025, influenza surveillance data showed the percentage of people testing positive in the southern provinces increased 35.8%.
Image credits: Steve Chung via Flickr
