This year’s first confirmed case of hantavirus hemorrhagic fever with renal syndrome (HFRS), which is mainly caused by contact with hantavirus-infected rodents, has been reported, the Centers for Disease Control (CDC) said yesterday.
A 62-year-old man living in the south developed symptoms, including fever and dizziness, early this month and subsequently experienced headaches, rashes, fatigue, diarrhea, abdominal pains and had low, dark-colored urine before seeking medical attention and being hospitalized.
He was later diagnosed with damaged hepatic and renal functions, fluid overload and shortness of breath, and was confirmed as having the hantavirus infection, the CDC said.
The man has since recovered after treatment and been discharged, the agency said, adding that the eight people living or working with him have not displayed symptoms associated with the virus.
Local health authorities collected mice from the patient’s work and living environments for testing and have also carried out rodent-control measures in the area to curb further infections, the CDC said.
HFRS is caused by infection with hantaviruses, which are mainly carried by rodents, especially commonly seen mice, the agency said.
“The hantavirus cannot be transferred from one person to another. People get infected with the virus by being exposed to the urine or droppings of virus-carrying mice. HFRS is the result if the virus-carrying droplets are inhaled,” CDC Deputy Director-General Chou Jih-haw (周志浩) said.
“A total of 12 cases of confirmed HFRS have been reported from 2001 to last year, none of which were fatal, but the virus can make people fairly uncomfortable,” he said, adding that hantavirus infection can cause fever, headaches, fatigue, abdominal pain, nausea, hemorrhages and kidney damage.
According to the results of the CDC’s 2010 research project on rodent-borne communicable diseases in the five special municipalities, people living near or working in night markets and wet markets are a high risk group for hantavirus infection.
Chou said people should make sure that there is no food for mice to eat and no place for them to stay.
Mice droppings or urine should be sprayed with bleach or alcohol and be disposed of 30 minutes later, he added.
UNDER WATCH: Taiwan will have to establish a standardized nucleic acid testing method to identify the virus and monitor its spread, the CDC said The Langya henipavirus, which can be transmitted from animals to humans, has been discovered in China, with 35 human infections reported so far, Taiwan’s Centers for Disease Control (CDC) said, adding that the nation would establish a nucleic acid testing method to identify the virus. A study titled “A Zoonotic Henipavirus in Febrile Patients in China” that was published in the New England Journal of Medicine on Thursday said that a new henipavirus associated with a fever-causing human illness was identified in China. The study said an investigation identified 35 patients with acute infection of the Langya henipavirus in China’s Shandong
MISSILE PATHS: Certain information on the Chinese missile fire was not disclosed to maintain secrecy over military intelligence-gathering capabilities, the MND said Military experts yesterday speculated on the implication of the government’s tight-lipped response and the lack of air-raid sirens during the first day of China’s military drills the previous day. On Thursday, the Chinese People’s Liberation Army (PLA) launched 11 Dongfeng-series ballistic missiles into waters north, east and south of Taiwan, a day after US House of Representative Speaker Nancy Pelosi’s departure from the country, the Ministry of National Defense (MND) said. The Japanese Ministry of Defense said that China fired nine missiles toward Taiwan, including four that flew over Taiwan proper. However, China’s exhibition of force failed to terrorize the local populace, because
If any war were to break out between the US and China, one trigger might be the increasingly frequent fighter jet encounters near Taiwan. Almost every day, Taiwanese fighter pilots hop in their US-made F-16s to intercept Chinese warplanes screaming past their territory. The encounters probe the nation’s defenses and force the pilots on both sides to avoid mistakes that could lead to a crisis that spins out of control. “I didn’t know whether they would fire at me,” said retired colonel Mountain Wang, recounting a tense five-minute confrontation he had with Chinese People’s Liberation Army (PLA) jets more than a decade
INCREASINGLY EMBOLDENED: China can no longer be dismissed as inexperienced, demonstrating an ability to coordinate land and sea missile systems, an expert said Beijing’s largest-ever exercises around Taiwan have offered essential clues into its plans for a grueling blockade in the event of an attack on Taiwan, and revealed an increasingly emboldened Chinese military, experts said. The visit to Taiwan by US House of Representatives Speaker Nancy Pelosi — second in line to the presidency — sparked outrage from Beijing, which launched vast military maneuvers around the nation, even at the risk of partially exposing its plans to the US and its Asian allies. Mobilizing fighter planes, helicopters and warships, the drills aim to simulate a blockade of Taiwan and include practicing an “attack on