The doctor spoke about the short incubation period of the Hong Kong flu

In Russia, there has been a sharp increase in the incidence of Hong Kong flu, the incubation period of which does not exceed two days. This was announced on December 18 by Doctor of Medical Sciences, doctor Dmitry Edelev.

"The incubation period of the virus is short, usually no more than two days. For others, the patient is contagious the day before the first signs of the disease appear and about five to seven days after the onset of the disease. If the disease proceeds without complications, the acute phase lasts about four to five days," the doctor says.

An important element of the fight against the disease is vaccination, which, although it does not provide full protection, significantly reduces the likelihood of complications and severe course of the disease. The World Health Organization claims that vaccination helps prevent infection in 50-60% of those vaccinated and reduces the risk of hospitalization by 70-80%.

Pregnant women, children, people with chronic diseases, people over 65 years of age and patients with immunodeficiency are at risk. At the same time, there is currently no data confirming any circulation of a "new, super-aggressive, mutated variant, immune to vaccination," which is being disseminated by the media.

To prevent the spread of the virus, it is recommended to observe hygiene, ventilate rooms and avoid crowded places, and if symptoms of acute respiratory viral infections appear, stay at home and seek medical help.

Hong Kong wheeze: flu incidence in Russia increased by 35 in two weeks%

But the pace began to decrease, Rospotrebnadzor said.

The press service of Rospotrebnadzor reported on December 16 that the incidence of influenza in Russia is estimated to be moderate. According to the agency, the 2025/26 epidemic season in the European region started four weeks earlier than usual. It is specified that currently there is a low vaccination rate in Europe, which leads to a high incidence.

Earlier in the day, the Russian office of the World Health Organization (WHO) reported that the Hong Kong flu, known as the influenza A (H3N2) strain, has become dominant in Russia. It was clarified that since mid-August 2025, there has been an increase in the number of cases of influenza caused by a new strain of H3N2 (a subtype of the influenza A virus).

All important news is on the Izvestia channel in the MAX messenger.