Following is the transcript of remarks made by the Secretary for Food and Health, Dr Ko Wing-man, after attending a public function today (March 5):

Reporter: Dr Ko, regarding to the influenza, is the peak season now? What do you think about the current situation? Is it more prevalent comparatively saying?

Secretary for Food and Health: I think we can say that Hong Kong now fully enters the peak of seasonal influenza. We begin to see the increase of influenza-likeness illnesses as well as percentage of positive culture of flu virus in the samples collected. We also begin to see in these two weeks an increase in outbreak clusters in various institutions including schools and elderly homes. Therefore, I have to appeal to the public again, especially those belong to the high risk groups who have not yet received flu vaccination, to take vaccination as soon as possible. After vaccination, it takes roughly two or three weeks for one to develop resistance to influenza.

Reporter: Is it H1 more prone to children? 

Secretary for Food and Health:  Last year, we saw a relative increase in the percentage of H1 cases which affected children more. Correspondingly, we saw more serious complications in children last year. This year, the major circulating strain is still H3. But we still have to observe closely how the actual situation develops.  

(Please also refer to the Chinese portion of the transcript.)

Ends/Sunday, March 5, 2017
Issued at HKT 13:20

NNNN