(Photo: Chanat Katanyu)Well-known virologist Yong Poovorawan has warned that a mutating influenza strain A H3N2 is spreading in Thailand. The A H3N2 strain has been spreading widely throughout the northern hemisphere in the cold season, he said, and its resistance to vaccines means there is a larger number of patients than usual. The ministry’s Department of Disease Control recorded 1.09 million influenza cases from Jan 1 to Dec 6, 2025. However, Prof Dr Yong wrote, although the mutation spurred transmission, the severity of the disease did not rise and the efficacy of antiviral medicines did not decline. The virologist still recommends that people be vaccinated, saying the available vaccines are safe because they are inactivated vaccines.

Source: Bangkok Post January 08, 2026 08:31 UTC