The number of new Covid-19 cases in Japan increased to 15,163 for the week ending Dec 8. -- PHOTO: AFP
TOKYO (The Straits Times/ANN): Japan is facing a concurrent increase in influenza and Covid-19 cases nationwide, according to official data, prompting health ministry reminders to take prevention measures as temperatures fall during winter.
For the week ending Dec 8, the number of new influenza cases increased to 44,673 new cases, about 20,000 more than the previous week, with an estimated 347,000 patients nationwide.
The number of new Covid-19 cases rose to 15,163 in the same period, an increase of more than 3,200 from the previous seven-day period. It was also the second consecutive week that new reported cases rose, with more than 1,600 new hospitalised Covid-19 patients.
An average of 9.03 new influenza patients visited medical institutions including hospitals and clinics, with the most new cases reported in the western Japanese prefectures of Fukuoka and Oita, followed by Chiba, where Narita International Airport is located.
The highest number of new Covid-19 patients was reported in the Tohoku region’s Akita prefecture and the northern Hokkaido prefecture.
Data was reported by around 5,000 medical institutions in the country and collated by Japan’s National Institute of Infectious Diseases and Ministry of Health, Labour and Welfare.
The ministry said infections tend to spread during the winter every year, NHK reported, and reminded people to take basic preventive measures seriously, including wearing masks as well as regular handwashing and gargling.
In order to reduce disease transmission, the ministry also said people should observe coughing etiquette by covering one’s mouth or nose with tissues or by coughing or sneezing only into one’s own elbows or jackets.
According to the ministry, typical influenza symptoms affecting the upper respiratory tract may include coughing, headache, a runny nose, fever, fatigue and joint pain. It can become more severe among the elderly, infants or those with compromised immune systems.
More than 32,000 people in Japan died from Covid-19 in the 12 months after May 2023 when most health prevention measures including quarantine for positive cases were lifted, health ministry data showed. Those aged 65 or older made up 97 per cent of deaths.
There were 2,244 influenza-linked deaths in the same period. - The Straits Times/ANN
