As flu cases increase, centering around elementary school students and infants, suspected cases have reached 4.6 times the number from the same period last year.

According to the Korea Disease Control and Prevention Agency (KDCA), monitoring of around 800 clinic-level medical institutions showed that suspected flu cases in the 37th week of this year stood at 31.0 per 1,000 people.

This is 4.6 times the 6.7 cases recorded during the same period last year.

It is also more than double the 13.1 cases recorded during the 2023-2024 season, when a flu epidemic persisted for a long time.

As the flu epidemic has begun unusually early, health authorities previously issued an influenza epidemic advisory on the 11th.

The number of hospitalized COVID-19 patients at hospital-level medical institutions also increased to 287 in the 37th week, rising compared to the previous week, the KDCA stated.

Due to the unusually early flu outbreak, health authorities have decided to move up the national immunization schedule for children and the elderly, and to continuously monitor vaccine supply conditions.

(Photo provided by Buk-gu, Jeonnam-Gwangju Unified Special City, Yonhap News)