Beijing, December 4th (Xinhua) -- Currently, it is the peak season for influenza. Several experts mentioned in recent interviews that the number of elderly patients may gradually increase from December onwards. Moreover, due to the prevalence of underlying diseases and poor immunity among elderly people, their condition is more likely to worsen after infection, and the probability of complications is also higher. At a press conference held by the National Health Commission on December 2nd, Wang Dayan, Director of the National Influenza Center at the Institute of Virology of the Chinese Center for Disease Control and Prevention, stated that the influenza epidemic season in winter and spring in various parts of China generally starts from mid to late October to mid to early March of the following year, and usually reaches its peak around January. On November 30th, the website of the National Influenza Center of China released a summary of the influenza epidemic situation in China as of November 26th. Monitoring data shows that in the 47th week of 2023 (November 20-November 26), the positive rate of influenza virus testing in southern and northern provinces continued to rise, with A (H3N2) subtype as the main subtype, followed by B (Victoria) strain. 401 outbreaks of influenza like cases have been reported nationwide. Wang Dayan mentioned that compared to last winter, the main subtypes of influenza A, H3N2, and B that are currently prevalent have not changed, and are consistent with the main branches of influenza that are prevalent in most parts of the world. Attention should be paid to the elderly population during the high incidence season of influenza, and the elderly are the population that needs special attention. At present, some hospitals have begun to pay attention to the changes in the number of elderly people among the hospital's medical population. A pharmacist in charge of Chengdu Integrated Traditional Chinese and Western Medicine Hospital said in an interview with the media, "Currently, there are a large number of elderly people infected, and many elderly people already have chronic diseases, such as chronic obstructive pulmonary disease or bronchial asthma. The sudden cold weather now can easily cause acute bacterial infections, leading to the aggravation of primary diseases.". Lu Hongzhou, the director of the Third People's Hospital of Shenzhen and the chief physician of the Department of Infectious Diseases, told China News Network that due to low resistance, elderly people have more respiratory complications and more obvious respiratory symptoms, which are more likely to worsen. Autumn is the peak period for respiratory infectious diseases, and there may be a peak for elderly patients seeking medical treatment in December. However, the number of adults, especially the elderly, among the patients he treated at the hospital is similar to before, and there has not yet been a significant upward trend. Zhou Zhihui, Deputy Director of the Department of Infectious Diseases at Shaw Run Shaw Hospital affiliated with Zhejiang University School of Medicine, reminds that there may be false negatives in influenza virus testing, which is related to factors such as insensitivity of testing reagents and inappropriate specimen collection methods. Therefore, patients with persistent high fever and signs of pneumonia, even if the flu test is negative, it is best to go to the hospital for further treatment and combine other tests to determine the cause. Especially for the elderly, it is important to diagnose and treat as early as possible. Vaccines are still the most economical and effective means of prevention. "Currently, during the high incidence season of influenza, influenza vaccines are still effective for people who have not received influenza vaccines before. It is recommended that everyone get influenza vaccines as soon as possible." Wang Dayan pointed out that people over 6 months old can receive influenza vaccines, especially for high-risk groups such as children, the elderly, and chronic disease patients, which occur after contracting influenza