Japan's flu cases surge to warning level at fastest pace in 10 years

The Japanese government on Friday said the average number of influenza patients at thousands of designated medical institutions nationwide had hit warning levels at their fastest pace in 10 years.Across roughly 5,000 institutions, 166,690 patients had been reported in the week through Dec. 10, averaging 33.72 people per facility and surpassing the warning level of 30, according to the Ministry of Health, Labor and Welfare.The National Institute of Infectious Diseases estimated that the number of patients nationwide totaled around 1,118,000 during the same period.The rapid spread reflects lo…READ FULL ARTICLE