The condition of a Taiwanese businessman who contracted the H7N9 avian influenza virus in China has improved to the point where he has been taken off his ventilator, and may soon be moved to a normal ward, National Taiwan University Hospital (NTUH) said on Tuesday.
“The patient has been taken off a ventilator, is no longer testing positive for the virus and has been taken off the anti-flu drug Tamiflu,” NTUH deputy superintendent Chang Shan-chwen (張上淳) said.
“If all goes well, the patient can be transferred to a normal ward in the next couple of days for continued treatment and recuperation,” Chang added.
The 53-year-old man, identified only by his surname, Lee (李), has been receiving intensive treatment in a negative pressure quarantine ward since April 20 after testing positive for the H7N9 virus following his return to Taiwan on April 9.
At the most serious stage of his illness, Lee was put on a ventilator and given extracorporeal membrane oxygenation (ECMO) therapy. He was taken off the ECMO, a machine that functions as an artificial lung, on Thursday last week.
“While the patient is clearly conscious and his health is improving steadily, he nevertheless remains weak and still suffers shortness of breath,” Chang said at a media briefing, with the consent of the patient’s family.
“It is still not clear when Lee can be discharged,” he added.
The H7N9 strain of bird flu had not been found in humans until cases were reported in China in April.
Scientists in China and other countries said the virus has jumped from birds, most probably chickens, to humans.
The virus has so far infected at least 129 people in China and killed 31 of them, according to the latest data from China’s health authorities and the WHO. To date, Taiwan is the only place outside China that has reported a case of H7N9.
Chang said that a sample of the virus obtained from Lee is likely to be used for virological study to analyze its genetic makeup, clinical symptoms and effectiveness of drug treatments.
A report from the Reuters news agency on Tuesday said that the WHO and the US Centers for Disease Control and Prevention have prepared samples of the virus to give to manufacturers for vaccine production.
New cell-culture technology developed by Novartis AG has reduced the production timeline for vaccines to a matter of weeks, although human safety trials will still require several months, the report said.
Major flu vaccine manufacturers include Sanofi SA, GlaxoSmithKline PLC, Novartis, Australia’s CSL Ltd, Baxter International Inc and AstraZeneca PLC, the report said.
The two main drugs that appear to be effective against H7N9 are Roche Holding AG’s Tamiflu and GlaxoSmithKline’s Relenza, the report added.
Chinese spouse and influencer Guan Guan’s (關關) residency permit has been revoked for repeatedly posting pro-China videos that threaten national security, the National Immigration Agency confirmed today. Guan Guan has said many controversial statements in her videos posted to Douyin (抖音), including “the red flag will soon be painted all over Taiwan” and “Taiwan is an inseparable part of China,” and expressing hope for expedited reunification. The agency last year received multiple reports alleging that Guan Guan had advocated for armed reunification. After verifying the reports, the agency last month issued a notice requiring her to appear and explain her actions. Guan
The Kaohsiung Tourism Bureau audited six hotels in an effort to prevent price gouging ahead of Korean band BTS’ concert tour in the city scheduled for Nov. 19, 21 and 22 this year. The bureau on Friday said that the audits — conducted in response to allegations of unfair pricing posted on social media — found no wrongdoing. These establishments included the local branches of Chateau de Chine, Hotel Nikko, My Humble House, and Grand Hai Lai, it said, adding that the Consumer Protection Commission would have penalized price gougers had the accusations been substantiated. The bureau said the Tourism Development Act
BACK TO WINTER: A strong continental cold air mass would move south on Tuesday next week, bringing colder temperatures to northern and central Taiwan A tropical depression east of the Philippines could soon be upgraded to be the first tropical storm of this year, the Central Weather Administration (CWA) said yesterday, adding that the next cold air mass is forecast to arrive on Monday next week. CWA forecaster Cheng Jie-ren (鄭傑仁) said the first tropical depression of this year is over waters east of the Philippines, about 1,867km southeast of Oluanpi (鵝鑾鼻), and could strengthen into Tropical Storm Nokaen by early today. The system is moving slowly from northwest to north, and is expected to remain east of the Philippines with little chance of affecting Taiwan,
The military yesterday said it has located the flight data recorder, or black box, of an F-16V jet that disappeared off eastern Taiwan earlier this month, and it would soon deploy a salvage team to try to retrieve it. Air Force Command Headquarters said that while it had pinned down the location of the black box, it was still searching for the aircraft’s sole pilot, air force Captain Hsin Po-yi (辛柏毅). Without providing details, the air force said it had located the black box days after detecting some intermittent signals and would now engage a team of professionals to retrieve it. The air
RSS