Via The Daily Yomiuri Online: Influenza cases reach seasonal high. Excerpt:
The spread of influenza this winter reached its peak thus far after an estimated 2.14 million cases were reported in the week from Jan. 21 to Jan. 27, an increase of about 50 percent from the previous week, the health ministry said.
According to the Health, Labor and Welfare Ministry, the incidence of flu cases at about 5,000 medical institutions across the country averaged 36.44 in the week starting Jan. 21, a jump from the 22.58 cases seen the prior week.
The ministry added that the number of patients and the spread of the illness are within a normal range. Classes have been canceled and other measures taken to prevent the spread of the virus at 5,107 facilities, including primary and middle schools, it said.
As in last year's flu season, the Type A Hong Kong virus has been most detected among the reported cases.
