The proportion of influenza B cases has seen a substantial increase among influenza patients across the country while the previously dominant influenza A (H3N2) has seen a significant decrease in proportion, the latest monitoring report released by the Chinese National Influenza Center (CNIC) shows. According to the Influenza Weekly Report released by CNIC last Thursday, between December 25 and 31, 2023, the proportion of influenza B virus strains currently account for 26.4 percent of the influenza cases in the southern parts of China and as much as 47.3 percent of the influenza cases in the northern parts of the country. Despite that the influenza A (H3N2) virus strains are still prevalent and account for 63.8 percent of the total influenza cases detected across the country, their dominance in transmission has decreased significantly. Topics about influenza B overtaking influenza A as the most transmissible virus have been trending on China’s social media platforms in recent days. The proportion of influenza B cases in the outpatient department of the Children’s Hospital Affiliated to Shanghai Jiao Tong University, School of Medicine, has been rising significantly over the past two weeks, Qian Liling, doctor from the respiratory department of the hospital told thepaper.cn on Sunday. According to Qian, based on the children visiting the hospital, there is no significant difference in symptoms caused by influenza A and influenza B and the proportion of cases requiring intensive care does not show a notable difference either. They both show a sudden onset of the disease with symptoms such as high fever, chills, sore throat, cough, and muscle aches all over the body. Patients’ temperatures can rise to 39C to 40C in several hours to 24 hours. In response to some netizens suspecting that patients with influenza B tend to have a longer duration of illness compared to those infected with influenza A and have more severe symptoms, Qian said that patients infected with influenza B generally have milder symptoms compared with those with influenza A, but some influenza B patients may experience more noticeable gastrointestinal symptoms according to her multiple years’ clinical experience. However, the overall durations of both diseases are similar, ranging from five to seven days.

根据中国国家流感中心（CNIC）发布的最新监测报告，全国范围内甲型流感患者中，乙型流感病例的比例显著增加，而此前占主导地位的甲型流感A（H3N2）的比例明显下降。

根据CNIC上周发布的《流感周报》，2023年12月25日至31日期间，目前在中国南部地区，乙型流感病毒株占流感病例的比例达到26.4％，而在北部地区更高达47.3％。

尽管甲型流感A（H3N2）病毒株仍然占据主导地位，占据全国范围内检测到的流感病例的63.8％，但它们在传播中的主导地位已经显著下降。

近日，关于乙型流感超过甲型流感成为最具传染性病毒的话题在中国社交媒体平台上成为热点。上海交通大学医学院附属儿童医院门诊部的乙型流感病例比例在过去两周内显著上升，该医院呼吸科医生钱丽玲在上周日告诉thepaper.cn。

根据钱医生的说法，根据就诊的儿童来看，由甲型流感和乙型流感引起的症状没有明显差异，需要重症监护的病例比例也没有明显差异。两者均表现为疾病的突发，症状包括高热、寒战、喉咙痛、咳嗽以及全身肌肉疼痛。患者的体温可在数小时至24小时内升至39摄氏度至40摄氏度。

针对一些网友怀疑乙型流感患者与甲型流感患者相比患病持续时间更长且症状更严重的观点，钱医生表示，总体而言，与甲型流感相比，感染乙型流感的患者症状较轻，但根据她多年的临床经验，一些乙型流感患者可能会经历更明显的胃肠道症状。然而，两种疾病的总体持续时间相似，为五到七天。