The average number of influenza patients per prefecture has decreased for the first time since the start of this year. According to the Akita Prefectural Health and Disease Control Division, the average number of patients reported from 51 designated medical institutions in the ninth week (February 27th to March 5th) was 12.49, a 21.3% decrease from the previous week (February 20th to 26th), which was 3.39 people lower. The Akita North region, consisting of the Odate and Kitakami health centers, also saw a decrease, reaching the lowest level in the prefecture.

The table below shows the prefecture average and the average number of patients per designated medical institution in each health center for the ninth and eighth weeks, as created by the same division. Among the nine health centers, the number of patients per designated medical institution decreased in six centers, including Odate and Kitakami in the Akita North region, while it increased in three centers: Noshiro, Yokote, and Yuzawa.

The prefecture declared the start of this season's epidemic when the number of patients exceeded the benchmark of one person, which occurred in the first week (January 2nd to 8th). Since then, the average number of patients per prefecture has been increasing, but it finally decreased in the ninth week.

However, the three health centers with the highest number of patients per designated medical institution, Yurihonjo (23.83 people), Akita City (22.82 people), and Daisen (17.57 people), have issued a "warning" for the second consecutive week, indicating that the situation still requires caution.

In the ninth week, influenza outbreaks occurred in ten nurseries and kindergartens in the prefecture, all of which were located in Akita City and southern areas, with none reported in the northern region including the Akita North region, as was the case in the previous week. (as of 12:00 a.m.)