Vector-borne disease risk on the rise, NDCPA says

The risk of vector-borne diseases such as dengue fever and chikungunya fever is rising across China, while the overall prevalence of respiratory infectious diseases remains stable at a low level, a health official said on Thursday.

Xi Jingjing, spokeswoman for the National Disease Control and Prevention Administration, said during a news conference that with active mosquito breeding and increased population mobility during the summer months, the risk of imported vector-borne diseases sparking local transmission is on the rise.

Southern provinces in particular face a heightened risk of experiencing local clusters of dengue and chikungunya infections.

As for respiratory pathogens, rhinovirus and parainfluenza are showing mild activity, while novel coronavirus transmission continues to be at a low level.

She also warned of increased risks of intestinal, respiratory, and vector-borne infectious diseases in areas affected by flooding.

Chang Zhaorui, a researcher at the Chinese Center for Disease Control and Prevention, said that China's COVID-19 level has remained at a low-level status since October 2025.

The outbreak showed a slight uptick in late May this year, but returned to low-level circulation by mid-June.

Recently, the positivity rate for COVID-19 nationwide has risen, but the overall epidemic level is deemed as only showing an upward trend and remaining at a low level overall.

She added that the dominant strain in circulation in China is the NB.1.8.1 lineage variant and current surveillance has not detected any new variants that may pose additional public health risks.

"The novel coronavirus has now evolved into a common respiratory infectious disease," Chang said. "The public need not be overly concerned about routine fluctuations in the epidemic."