China Winter Flu: Cold snap leads to increasing flu cases

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A cold snap across China has made the arrival of winter official, and with it the number of flu cases has spiked significantly. CGTN's Xu Mengqi has more from Central China.

After two rounds of heavy snow storms and weeks of below-freezing temperatures. A flu epidemic.

LI YUNCHANG PARENT "My child is five years and 3 months old. He's been having a high fever for two days. My major concern is that the fever will lead to complications."

YANG YING, ASSOCIATE CHIEF PHYSICIAN HENAN CHILDREN'S HOSPITAL "A lot of patients came to me with persistent fever this year, accompanied by symptoms of chills and fatigue. Some of the older kids say they suffer from muscle or body aches, as well as headaches."

Across China, the number of reported flu cases has risen significantly compared to past years. But it could be down to a lack of prevention.

XU MENGQI ZHENGZHOU, HENAN "The rate for flu vaccination remains low in China. Some of the parents told me they had not heard of a flu vaccine, and others doubt it would work. And because this year's flu outbreak happened so fast, hospital staff say they haven't had the chance to get the injection."

With increasing patient volume, hospitals are struggling to keep up with rising medication demand.

ZHOU YIBO, DEPUTY MEDICAL ADMINISTRATOR HENAN CHILDREN'S HOSPITAL "Our monitoring data shows that since December, we've used three times the amount of antiviral medication for flu than in past years, so we launched an emergency plan to ensure the stock."

Flu viruses are easily spread by contact with an infected person or by touching contaminated objects. Doctors say good personal and environmental hygiene are still the mainstay of prevention. Xu Mengqi, CGTN, Zhengzhou, Henan province.