英语新闻丨Spread of flu more prevalent than COVID

Since the start of this year, the number of visits to fever clinics across China has fluctuated but has overall trended downward, the nation's health authority said on Sunday.

中国卫生部门周日表示，今年以来，全国发热门诊就诊人数虽有波动，但总体呈下降趋势。

Medical services are being provided in a stable and well-organized way. Currently, among respiratory diseases, influenza remains predominant, while the infection levels of the novel coronavirus are at a relatively low level, said Mi Feng, spokesperson for the National Health Commission. , Mi said.

国家卫健委新闻发言人米锋表示，医疗服务供给平稳有序。目前，呼吸道疾病中，流感仍占主导地位，新型冠状病毒感染水平仍处于较低水平。

"As the Spring Festival holiday approaches, the potential for large-scale population movement and gatherings poses an increased risk of respiratory disease transmission," he said. He called for effective monitoring, early warning systems and better management at key locations.

他说：“随着春节假期的临近，大规模人口流动和聚集可能会增加呼吸道疾病传播的风险”。呼吁在关键地点建立有效的监测、预警系统和更好的管理。

Timely health consultations and guidance will be provided to vulnerable groups, including the elderly, pregnant women, children and those with chronic existing health conditions. Convenient access to vaccines will also be ensured for these populations, he said.

他说，将为老年人、孕妇、儿童和慢性病患者等弱势群体提供及时的健康咨询和指导,并确保这些人群能够方便地获得疫苗。

Over the past few weeks, the influenza B virus surpassed the influenza A virus in prevalence in some regions, so individuals at high risk should consider getting vaccinated, said Wang Dayan, director of the Chinese National Influenza Center at the Chinese Center for Disease Control and Prevention, at the news conference.

中国疾病预防控制中心国家流感中心主任王大燕在新闻发布会上表示，过去几周，部分地区乙型流感病毒流行率超过甲型流感病毒，高危人群应考虑接种疫苗。

She said that southern provinces entered the flu season in early October, followed by northern provinces later in the month. Over the past five weeks, northern provinces have seen the influenza B virus surge to 57.7 percent of all the infected cases, while southern provinces recorded a 36.8 percent increase over the past three weeks,.

王大燕说，南方省份于10月初进入流感季节，北方省份随后于本月晚些时候进入流感季节。过去五周，北方省份的乙型流感病毒病例激增至所有感染病例的57.7%，而南方省份过去三周的增幅为36.8%。

Distinguishing between influenza A and B viruses is challenging based solely on clinical symptoms. To identify the virus type, nucleic acid and antigen detection are necessary. It's crucial to note that immunity developed after contracting one type of influenza virus does not protect against others, and vaccination is necessary, she said.

她还表示，仅根据临床症状来区分甲型和乙型流感病毒具有挑战性，要确定病毒类型，需要进行核酸和抗原检测。重要的是要注意，感染一种流感病毒后产生的免疫力并不能预防其他流感病毒，因此有必要接种疫苗。

Meanwhile, China's COVID-19 situation has remained at a low level since New Year's Day. Various monitoring systems indicated that the positivity rate for COVID-19 testing in specific hospitals is below 1 percent. The JN.1 variant of the coronavirus, known for its rapid global spread, is on the rise, Wang said.

与此同时，王大燕说，自元旦以来，中国的新冠疫情感染一直保持在较低水平。各种监测系统表明，特定医院的COVID-19检测阳性率低于1%，以在全球快速传播而闻名的冠状病毒JN.1变种正在上升。

In the short term, the dominant factor is expected to be the influenza virus. Factors such as the influx of the JN.1 variant and a decline in population immunity could contribute to a potential resurgence of COVID-19 infections this month, she said.

她说，短期来看，预计流感病毒将是主导因素。JN.1 变种涌入，人群免疫力下降，众多因素都可能导致本月新冠感染卷土重来。

Immunity

英 /ɪˈmjuː.nə.ti/ 美/ɪˈmjuː.nə.ti/

n. 免疫力

Influenza

英 /ˌɪn.fluˈen.zə/ 美/ˌɪn.fluˈen.zə/

n. 流感