Epidemic flu period may begin this week, peak around Lunar New Year: CDC

Taipei, Jan. 20 (CNA) Taiwan could enter the influenza epidemic period as early as this week, with infections expected to peak around the Lunar New Year holiday, the Centers for Disease Control (CDC) said Tuesday.

From Jan. 11-17, outpatient and emergency visits for influenza-like illnesses reached 104,348, marking a second consecutive weekly increase, CDC officials said at a routine press briefing. They added that weekly visits could climb to as high as 140,000 during the peak period.

Lee Chia-lin (李佳琳), deputy director of the CDC's Epidemic Intelligence Center, said visits rose 11.9 percent from the previous week, and from Jan. 13-19, 17 new cases of severe influenza complications and two related deaths were reported.

Laboratory surveillance shows that influenza viruses are currently the predominant respiratory pathogens circulating in the community, Lee said. Among them, influenza A (H3N2) accounts for the majority of cases, followed by influenza B and untyped influenza A.

So far this flu season, Taiwan has recorded 458 severe cases and 88 deaths, officials said, pointing out that people aged 65 and older accounted for 63 percent of severe cases, while 83 percent of patients had underlying chronic illnesses.

Officials noted that about 87 percent of severe cases had not received this season's flu shot, urging people in high-risk groups to get vaccinated as soon as possible.

As of Jan. 19, approximately 6.68 million publicly funded flu vaccinations had been administered nationwide, with around 152,000 doses remaining.