The Centers for Disease Control (CDC) yesterday warned travelers to China and Hong Kong about an outbreak of scarlet fever, which has infected thousands of people and was expected to continue to spread over the summer.
The CDC said that as of yesterday, there have been 21,269 reported cases of scarlet fever in China this year, about 3.6 times as many as the same period last year. There were 9,308 new cases last month, or 4.1 times as many as the 2,269 cases reported a year ago.
Hong Kong has reported 466 cases this year, with two deaths — a seven-year-old girl last month and a five-year-old boy on Tuesday. Macau has reported 49 cases.
The CDC said the number of reported cases of scarlet fever in the region is two to three times the normal range and the number of cases so far in the outbreak is greater than the annual number reported over the past 10 years.
Health officials said travelers to Hong Kong, Macau and China should wash their hands frequently and avoid visiting places with little or no fresh air.
Those who have been diagnosed with scarlet fever and received medical treatment should avoid going to public places such as schools or workplaces until 24 hours after the fever has subsided, they said.
Scarlet fever symptoms include a bright red rash, fever, sore throat and a “strawberry-colored” tongue. The disease mainly affects children between the ages of two and eight. Symptoms usually subside within 48 hours with treatment of appropriate antibiotics.
However, the new strain has about 60 percent resistance to antibiotics used to treat it, compared with 10 percent to 30 percent in previous strains, Yuen Kwok-yung, head of Hong Kong University’s microbiology department, said yesterday in Hong Kong.
Certain characteristics of the new strain likely make it more easily transmitted, he said.
Additional reporting by AFP and AP
A drunk woman was sexually assaulted inside a crowded concourse of Taipei Railway Station on Thursday last week before a foreign tourist notified police, leading to calls for better education on bystander intervention and review of security infrastructure. The man, surnamed Chiu (邱), was taken into custody on charges of sexual assault, taking advantage of the woman’s condition and public indecency. Police discovered that Chiu was a fugitive with prior convictions for vehicle theft. He has been taken into custody and is to complete his unserved six-month sentence, police said. On Thursday last week, Chiu was seen wearing a white
The Taoyuan Flight Attendants’ Union yesterday vowed to protest at the EVA Air Marathon on Sunday next week should EVA Airway Corp’s management continue to ignore the union’s petition to change rules on employees’ leave of absence system, after a flight attendant reportedly died after working on a long-haul flight while ill. The case has generated public discussion over whether taking personal or sick leave should affect a worker’s performance review. Several union members yesterday protested at the Legislative Yuan, holding white flowers and placards, while shouting: “Life is priceless; requesting leave is not a crime.” “The union is scheduled to meet with
‘UNITED FRONT’ RHETORIC: China’s TAO also plans to hold weekly, instead of biweekly, news conferences because it wants to control the cross-strait discourse, an expert said China’s plan to expand its single-entry visa-on-arrival service to Taiwanese would be of limited interest to Taiwanese and is a feeble attempt by Chinese administrators to demonstrate that they are doing something, the Mainland Affairs Council said yesterday. China’s Taiwan Affairs Office (TAO) spokesman Chen Binhua (陳斌華) said the program aims to facilitate travel to China for Taiwanese compatriots, regardless of whether they are arriving via direct flights or are entering mainland China through Hong Kong, Macau or other countries, and they would be able to apply for a single-entry visa-on-arrival at all eligible entry points in China. The policy aims
The government yesterday donated US$200,000 to the Philippines to support post-earthquake relief and recovery efforts, following a powerful magnitude 6.9 quake that struck Cebu Province late last month, killing at least 72 people and injuring 559 others. The donation was presented earlier yesterday by Representative to the Philippines Wallace Chow (周民淦) to Cherbett Maralit, deputy resident representative of the Manila Economic and Cultural Office, at Taiwan’s representative office in Manila. In his remarks, Chow expressed concern for those affected by the magnitude 6.9 earthquake that struck the central Philippines on the night of Sept. 30. "We sincerely hope for the earliest possible
RSS