The Centers for Disease Control (CDC) yesterday said there have been seven reported cases of enterovirus D68 (EV-D68) infection in the nation this year, but none included more severe symptoms such as acute flaccid paralysis reported in Japan and the US.
The centers on Thursday issued a notice, asking physicians to raise awareness about possible EV-D68 cases and collect test samples.
In the seven cases, the patients ranged in age from one to 22, their illnesses were reported between June and last month, the centers said.
“The testing samples we collected from the patients’ respiratory tract at hospitals and clinics showed no severe symptoms like those found in the US,” CDC Deputy Director-General Chuang Jen-hsiang (莊人祥) said.
“So far we have not found signs of an increased threat to the public in Taiwan,” he added.
Analyzing the DNA sequence of the strain of EV-D68 collected in Taiwan in the past two years showed the strain is different from the one found in the US last year, but whether this is the reason for the differences in symptoms still needs to be confirmed, the CDC said.
However, because EV-D68 infection has infected children in the US, many of whom required hospitalization, the CDC has asked physicians to collect stool samples and throat swabs on patients suffering from acute flaccid paralysis.
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