The Centers for Disease Control (CDC) said on Thursday that there was no SARS (severe acute respiratory syndrome) outbreak in China, despite unverified reports circulating on the Internet.
The Chinese health authorities have said that there is no SARS outbreak within its territory, CDC Deputy Director-General Chou Jih-haw (周志浩) said on Thursday.
The Chinese authorities were scheduled to provide information to the CDC regarding the rumors yesterday, he said.
SARS is a respiratory disease caused by a virus that infects the lungs and causes difficulty in breathing. Common antibiotics have proven ineffective against the virus and patients are dependent on clinical treatment to recover.
Many Chinese Internet users have voiced concern over a possible SARS pandemic in a military hospital in Hebei Province, -according to a newspaper.
Although the Chinese government has yet to officially deny the rumor, bloggers alleged that hundreds of patients have been hospitalized in isolation wards and at least one has died from the disease, the newspaper report said.
In the past, the Chinese government covered up news about infectious cases.
There are so far no reports from Hong Kong, which was one of the areas hardest hit by the SARS -pandemic from 2002 to 2003, or the rest of the world.
While customs officials are equipped with sensors to detect passengers running a fever, a typical symptom of SARS, Chou said Taiwan had also established more than 1,000 isolation wards and facilities.
SARS resulted in about 70 deaths in Taiwan a decade ago, including a number of medical staff in charge of patients, Chou said.
The CDC late yesterday said that the Chinese health authorities had confirmed that a reported outbreak of SARS was in fact a case of adenovirus infection. China informed the CDC the suspected outbreak in Hebei Province had been confirmed as adenovirus type 55 infection, Chou said.
However, China did not reveal the scale of the epidemic.
Chou said that adenovirus infection was easy to treat and that the CDC did not need to investigate any further.
Adenovirus type 55 infection was first discovered in China’s Shaanxi Province in 2006. Of 254 high school students treated for the infection, only one died.
There is no record of adenovirus type 55 infection in Taiwan, CDC statistics show.
Taiwan is to commence mass production of the Tien Kung (天弓, “Sky Bow”) III, IV and V missiles by the second quarter of this year if the legislature approves the government’s NT$1.25 trillion (US$39.78 billion) special defense budget, an official said yesterday. Commenting on condition of anonymity, a defense official with knowledge of the matter said that the advanced systems are expected to provide crucial capabilities against ballistic and cruise missiles for the proposed “T-Dome,” an advanced, multi-layered air defense network. The Tien Kung III is an air defense missile with a maximum interception altitude of 35km. The Tien Kung IV and V
The disruption of 941 flights in and out of Taiwan due to China’s large-scale military exercises was no accident, but rather the result of a “quasi-blockade” used to simulate creating the air and sea routes needed for an amphibious landing, a military expert said. The disruptions occurred on Tuesday and lasted about 10 hours as China conducted live-fire drills in the Taiwan Strait. The Civil Aviation Administration (CAA) said the exercises affected 857 international flights and 84 domestic flights, affecting more than 100,000 travelers. Su Tzu-yun (蘇紫雲), a research fellow at the government-sponsored Institute for National Defense and Security Research, said the air
A strong continental cold air mass is to bring pollutants to Taiwan from tomorrow, the Ministry of Environment said today, as it issued an “orange” air quality alert for most of the country. All of Taiwan except for Hualien and Taitung counties is to be under an “orange” air quality alert tomorrow, indicating air quality that is unhealthy for sensitive groups. In China, areas from Shandong to Shanghai have been enveloped in haze since Saturday, the ministry said in a news release. Yesterday, hourly concentrations of PM2.5 in these areas ranged from 65 to 160 micrograms per cubic meter (mg/m³), and pollutants were
Taiwan’s armed forces have established response protocols for a wide range of sudden contingencies, including the “Wan Chun Plan” to protect the head of state, the Ministry of Defense (MND) said today. After US President Donald Trump on Saturday launched a series of airstrikes in Venezuela and kidnapped Venezuelan President Nicolas Maduro, concerns have been raised as to whether China would launch a similar “decapitation strike” on Taiwan. The armed forces regularly coordinate with relevant agencies and practice drills to ensure preparedness for a wide range of scenarios, Vice Minister of National Defense Hsu Szu-chien (徐斯儉) told reporters before a
RSS