China's health ministry said Monday the prevalence of A/H1N1 flu this winter would not be as serious as it was in 2009, though the country has entered its peak season for influenza.

According to current monitoring results, the incidence of A/H1N1 flu in China remains at "a low level," Ministry of Health spokesman Deng Haihua said at a press conference in Beijing.

This was because the world had been in post-pandemic period for nearly half a year, and because China had conducted a large-scale vaccination program against A/H1N1 flu, Deng said in response to a question concerning possible outbreaks of A/H1N1 flu.

According to figures from the ministry, there were 146 A/H1N1 flu cases recorded nationwide in December 2010. None of them caused death.

About 28,000 confirmed cases of A/H1N1 flu were reported in December 2009.

Deng said the ministry has included A/H1N1 flu in its regular monitoring system and health departments will promptly deal with should new cases occur.

Health departments will also step up monitoring at venues where people gather, such as schools and homes for old people, he said.

The ministry will also follow the development of the virus, he added.

The A/H1N1 flu outbreak peaked in 2009. The Chinese mainland reported its first case in May of that year. More than 120,000 A/H1N1 flu cases were recorded in 2009, with 648 of them leading to death.

(Xinhua News Agency January 10, 2011)