CRI听力: China's A/H1N1 Peak Yet to Come

Since the first outbreak of the A/H1N1 flu in April this year, the Chinese government has taken a series of effective measures to protect its citizens from the disease. However, the arrival of the flu season means the country faces a greater challenge in the months ahead. The death toll now stands at 4 cases.

Zeng Guang, chief epidemiologist of the Chinese Center for Disease Control and Prevention, says the number of A/H1N1 infections in China is expected to peak between this winter and spring. However, he insists measures taken by the government remain effective. (www.hXen.com)

"The protection measures are sufficient. The second peak of the A/H1N1 flu outbreak in China does not mean that we are failing to control the epidemic. On the contrary, our efforts can be seen as a success, since this peak is coming much later than other parts of the world and will be much less serious."

Compared with the first A/H1N1 flu epidemic in China, the expected winter outbreak is very different. First, the number of confirmed cases is now much larger, which means there will be more critical patients and more reported deaths. Second, while there were sporadic cases in the past, the virus has now centralized in some areas, especially in remote places which lack facilities to deal with the disease.

Zeng Guang says the main task for the protection and control of the second outbreak is increasing precautionary measures and starting to use vaccine.

"The most important thing is prevention. Medical workers should try to let patients know that they have been infected at the beginning of their illness. It is also important to find the first case in places where no case has been found before. The technology China used to produce the A/H1N1 flu vaccine is the same used to produce regular flu vaccine. This is mature technology."

In spite of the sharp increase of cases, Zeng Guang says he is still hopeful the A/H1N1 flu can be kept under control in China.

"It's just like climbing a mountain. While it may be pretty easy at the beginning, we have just arrived at the first precipitous part of the journey. We have not yet reached the top and we still have a long way to go. It's very important for us to get a clear understanding of possible difficulties. The key is how well hospitals are able to cope."

Shuang Feng, CRI news.