Taipei County health officials warned yesterday that the spread of enteroviruses might be more serious than first thought.
Since a new measure that requires schools to report enterovirus cases was put into effect on June 5, the number of the reported cases surged nearly fourfold to 379 last week, compared with no more than 100 cases a week before, the official said.
Enterovirus are small viruses that are second only to the common cold as the most common viral infections in humans.
Enterovirus 71 (EV71) can cause diarrhea, rashes and hand, foot and mouth disease. It is the most common cause of aseptic meningitis and can cause serious illness, especially in infants and those with compromised immune systems.
In Taipei County, 26 kindergartens, daycare centers and some first-grade and second-grade classes in elementary schools have announced temporary suspensions of classes in a bid to stem the spread.
Schools that fail to report enterovirus cases to the health authorities face fines of between NT$3,000 and NT$15,000 and being named in the media.
Centers for Disease Control Deputy Director Chou Chih-hau (周志浩) said Monday that the enterovirus outbreak will peak this week.
Chou asked all elementary schools, kindergartens and daycare centers to rigorously follow the regulations on class suspensions to prevent the spread of the viruses.
A Cabinet-level epidemic response command center has already ordered that daycare centers, kindergartens and schools must close for disinfection whenever two confirmed cases are reported in one class in a week.
The Taipei City Department of Health said yesterday that 113 classes at elementary schools, kindergartens and daycare centers had been suspended.
The department said a total of 192 serious enterovirus cases, including 187 EV71 infections, have been confirmed in the country so far this year, with seven fatalities.
In Taipei City, there have been four suspected enterovirus cases to date, with one confirmed serious case.
Department of Health Commissioner Chiu Wen-hsiang (邱文祥) said the number of new cases is expected to drop when summer vacation begins and the amount of contact between students declines.
He said the Taipei Department of Environmental Protection began disinfecting the city’s elementary schools, kindergartens and daycare centers last Saturday and that 696 have been cleaned, with work at the remaining 156 to be completed by the end of yesterday.
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