RIO DE JANEIRO, July 19 (Xinhua) -- A flu has claimed 839 lives in Brazil so far this year, nearly triple the number during the same period in 2017, Brazil's Health Ministry said on Thursday.

A total of 4,680 flu cases have been confirmed in Brazil in the first seven months of 2018, according to the ministry, compared to 1,782 cases during the same period last year.

H1N1 was responsible for 60 percent of the cases this year, claiming 567 lives so far. In 2017, 73.7 percent cases were caused by the H3N2 flu.

The Brazilian government has launched a vaccination campaign in April to inoculate 54.4 million people against influenza.

The ministry said that 90 percent of the targeted group, including children, the elderly, pregnant women and indigenous populations, amounting to circa 51.4 million Brazilians had already been vaccinated.

However, vaccination among pregnant women and children aged between six months to five years, is still low, with their respective inoculation rates at 77.8 and 76.5 percent.