Taipei, July 4 (CNA) The Centers for Disease Control (CDC) said on Tuesday it believes the spate of influenza outbreaks around Taiwan have reached their peak point and expects the trend to slow down this month.
From June 25 to July 1, the number of people seeking emergency treatment for flu-related symptoms at hospitals was 127,521, an increase of 6.8 percent from the previous week's 119,367, according to CDC statistics.
The growth rate is lower than the 26.9 percent, 13.7 percent and 14.1 percent recorded in the previous three weeks, the data indicates.
CDC Epidemic Intelligence Center Director Liu Ting-ping said although the indications are that the spread of the outbreaks is slowing down, it remains at its peak.
"It is anticipated that the trend will drop off in July," said Liu.
According to the CDC, there were 99 new cases of patients suffering from severe complications due to the flu, mostly the H3N2 type virus, last week.
Seven fatalities were reported in the same period, with the deceased all aged between 32 and 95 and having a history of chronic illness, the agency said.
There have been 859 severe cases of flu since July 1, 2016, with 86 fatalities, according to the CDC, which measures the incidence of flu over a one year period that starts in early July and runs to June the following year.
Annual accumulated fatalities were the lowest for six years, the CDC said.
