China's Ministry of Health on Wednesday said that China has entered the annual peak period of flu outbreak, but chances of a large-scale flu outbreak in the near future are low.

Since December last year, the number of flu patients in hospitals has been on the rise. The situation in north China, including Beijing and Tianjin, is more serious than that in the south, Mao Qunan, a ministry spokesman said.

"There is little possibility of a large-scale flu outbreak in the near future, but small outbreaks in some regions can not be avoided," Mao said.

He said that the overall number of flu cases since October was still less than that of the same period last year.

According to the Beijing municipal disease control center, Beijing has witnessed a noticeable rise in the number patients with symptoms of flu. Local hospitals receive more than 4,700 patients with symptoms of flu each day, 58 percent being children under 15 and five percent senior citizens above 60 years of age.

Beijing municipal health authorities have called for close monitoring of people suffering from respiratory infectious diseases.

The Municipal Health Bureau ordered medical workers at disease control centers to remain on high alert and report the first occurrence of fever involving a group of people and handle such cases as quickly as possible.

The bureau also urged local hospitals to have more doctors and nurses on duty and take measures to prevent infections being passed between patients.

(Xinhua News Agency January 11, 2007)