Respiratory Disease Spread in China... COVID-19 Vaccination Recommended

Majority of COVID-19 Infections Are XBB Variant Cases

Respiratory diseases such as pneumonia and influenza are rapidly spreading in China. Local governments in China are encouraging vaccination to respond to the COVID-19 variant virus XBB.

View of Beijing Station, China [Image source=Yonhap News]

According to Chinese state media Global Times and other foreign media on the 9th, local governments in Shanghai, Tianjin, Wuhan, and other areas recently sent notices to residents recommending COVID-19 vaccination. The notices included content stating that elderly and children, who are vulnerable, must get vaccinated as the XBB variant has strong immune evasion capabilities.

Global Times cited an analysis by the Chinese Center for Disease Control and Prevention, reporting that most recent COVID-19 infections are cases of the XBB variant. Lu Hongzhou, director of the Third People's Hospital in Shenzhen, China, predicted, "The number of elderly patients vulnerable to respiratory infections may increase," and "The number of elderly patients could peak in December."

In China, respiratory diseases such as Mycoplasma pneumonia are spreading mainly among children, causing school classes to be suspended. Hospital rooms are also in short supply. Recently, cases of respiratory diseases in adults have also been increasing.

The Chinese Ministry of Education has instructed frontline schools to do their best in preventing and controlling respiratory diseases. They have requested measures such as refraining from sending infected teachers and students to school and stockpiling masks and antipyretics.