ATHENS, Feb. 7 (Xinhua) -- Thirty nine people have lost their lives in Greece due to complications from the flu during the current flu season which started in late November, Greece's Center for Disease Control and Prevention (KEELPNO) announced on Thursday.

The 21 victims succumbed during the past seven days, experts told a press briefing in Athens. Only two days ago, the death toll stood at 22.

Currently 165 patients were hospitalized in intensive care units from complications of the flu virus type AH1N1, in most cases, Greek epidemiologists said.

They underlined the significance of vaccination for people belonging to population segments at high risk of complications.

Eight out of ten of the patients who ended in intensive care were not vaccinated although they had prior health problems, KEELPNO noted.

About 1.7 million Greeks have been vaccinated this season, most aged over 60, according to General Secretary of Public Health Yannis Baskozos.

Greece is still lagging below the 75 percent threshold which the WHO has set for the vaccination of people belonging to population segments at high risk of complications, he said.

In the previous flu season 2017-2018, KEELPNO had recorded 42 fatalities, down from 108 in the winter season 2016-2017, according to the official data. Enditem

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