PUBLISHED : 21 Nov 2025 at 15:09
The Japanese government said on Friday the average number of influenza patients at thousands of designated medical institutions nationwide has hit warning levels at the fastest pace in 10 years.
Across roughly 3,000 institutions, 145,526 patients were reported during the week from Nov 10 to Sunday, averaging 37.73 people per facility and surpassing the warning level of 30, according to the Ministry of Health, Labour and Welfare.
The figure, 1.73 times higher than the previous week, means the warning level being reached five weeks earlier than last season.
The highest number of cases by prefecture was 80.02 in Miyagi prefecture, northeastern Japan.
Influenza outbreaks typically occur in winter and the end of spring in Japan.