Key facts
- Hong Kong recorded 29 severe pediatric influenza cases this flu season, two of which were fatal.
- Mike Kwan Yat-wah said the flu season could stretch longer if summer and winter cycles overlap.
- Kwan urged parents to have unvaccinated children receive this season's influenza shot promptly.
A Hong Kong pediatric infectious diseases expert has called on parents to have their children vaccinated against influenza before temperatures fall in the coming week, warning that the city faces a long flu season if the summer and winter seasons overlap. The city has recorded 29 cases of severe pediatric influenza infection this flu season, two of which were fatal, according to the report.
Dr Mike Kwan Yat-wah, described as a former president of the Asian Society for Pediatric Infectious Diseases, said on November 7, 2026 that a colder spell could stretch the current flu season into the winter one, producing a long period of infection. "I really worry that the current flu season will merge with the winter flu season," Kwan said, and warned that more severe pediatric cases or deaths could follow.