Japan is in the grip of an influenza epidemic, the Ministry of Health, Labor and Welfare announced on Oct. 3.
It said the flu season started five weeks earlier than last year, its second-earliest start in 20 years.
The ministry called on people to take preventive measures such as frequent handwashing, wearing masks and getting vaccinated.
The number of flu patients at designated medical institutions nationwide over the most recent reporting period, Sept. 22 to Sept. 28, was 4,030. This equates to 1.04 patients per institution, exceeding the 1.00-threshold that indicates the start of an epidemic.
During this period, the number of childcare centers, kindergartens, and elementary, junior high and high schools that closed schools, grades or classes increased by 40 from the previous week to 135, or more than three times the figure for the corresponding period last year.
Reiko Saito, a professor of public health at Niigata University said the early start of the flu outbreak was likely influenced by the record high number of foreign tourists visiting Japan.
“A full-scale outbreak is likely to occur around late December to February, as usual. There’s no need for panic, but I believe it’s safer for children and the elderly to get vaccinated by the end of November,” she said.
AloJapan.com