Three new measles infections and one case of serious complications caused by an enterovirus infection were confirmed last week, the Centers for Disease Control (CDC) said yesterday.
The sources of the new measles infections are still under investigation, Epidemic Intelligence Center Deputy Director Guo Hung-wei (郭宏偉) said.
A total of 74 measles cases have been confirmed in Taiwan this year, including 28 people who were infected overseas, and the majority (76 percent) are aged between 20 and 39, Guo said, adding that 3,056 people are being monitored for symptoms.
Photo: CNA
Seven measles cases confirmed earlier this month were associated with three clusters of infections: one started by a person infected in Hong Kong and two clusters initiated by two people infected in Thailand, he said.
A man in his 20s was infected in Hong Kong and transmitted the disease to four people at a restaurant in New Taipei City and another four people when he sought treatment at a hospital, CDC Deputy Director-General Philip Lo (羅一鈞) said.
The measles virus can remain infectious in the air for more than an hour after an infected person leaves an area, Lo said, adding that the four people infected at the hospital did not come into direct contact with the man — some had only walked through the same hallway.
As the measles, mumps and rubella vaccination rate in Taiwan is relatively high, a person infected with measles usually only transmits the disease to three to four people at most, he said, adding that the cluster of nine cases that started in Hong Kong is the nation’s largest cluster this year so far.
A case of serious complications caused by enterovirus 71 (EV71) was confirmed last week in a five-year-old boy in Kaohsiung, CDC doctor Cheng Hao-yuan (鄭皓元) said.
The boy early this month presented with repeated high fevers, shortness of breath, headaches, rashes and trembling before being hospitalized, he said, adding that the boy was later admitted to a pediatric intensive care unit after he developed symptoms including involuntary muscle spasms, a rapid heartbeat and the inability to walk steadily.
The boy’s condition has stabilized and he has been discharged, Cheng said, adding that six cases of severe complications from enterovirus infection have been confirmed this year.
The EV71 epidemic cycle is usually two to four years, but the last large outbreak in Taiwan was in 2012, which resulted in more than 30 cases of severe complications caused by EV71 infection, so the CDC is paying extra attention to enterovirus infections this year to prevent another large outbreak, Lo said.
The CDC urged parents to watch for signs of severe complications caused by enterovirus infection and to seek immediate medical treatment if symptoms are observed.
Considering that most countries issue more than five denominations of banknotes, the central bank has decided to redesign all five denominations, the bank said as it prepares for the first major overhaul of the banknotes in more than 24 years. Central bank Governor Yang Chin-lung (楊金龍) is expected to report to the Legislative Yuan today on the bank’s operations and the redesign’s progress. The bank in a report sent to the legislature ahead of today’s meeting said it had commissioned a survey on the public’s preferences. Survey results showed that NT$100 and NT$1,000 banknotes are the most commonly used, while NT$200 and NT$2,000
The Centers for Disease Control (CDC) yesterday reported the first case of a new COVID-19 subvariant — BA.3.2 — in a 10-year-old Singaporean girl who had a fever upon arrival in Taiwan and tested positive for the disease. The girl left Taiwan on March 20 and the case did not have a direct impact on the local community, it said. The WHO added the BA.3.2 strain to its list of Variants Under Monitoring in December last year, but this was the first imported case of the COVID-19 variant in Taiwan, CDC Deputy Director-General Lin Ming-cheng (林明誠) said. The girl arrived in Taiwan on
ANNUAL EVENT: Two massive Pokemon balloons are to be set up in Daan Park, with an event zone operating from 10am to 6pm This year’s Taipei Floral Picnic is to be held at Daan Park today and tomorrow, featuring an exclusive Pokemon Go event, a themed food market, a coffee rave picnic area and stage performances, the Taipei Department of Information and Tourism said yesterday. Two massive Pokemon balloons are to be set up in the park as attractions, with an exclusive event zone operating from 10am to 6pm, it said. Participants who complete designated tasks on-site would have a chance to receive limited-edition souvenirs, it added. People could also try the newly launched game Pokemon Pokopia in the trial area, the department said. Three PokeStops are
South Korea is planning to revise its controversial electronic arrival card, a step Taiwanese officials said prompted them to hold off on planned retaliatory measures, a South Korean media report said yesterday. A Yonhap News Agency report said that the South Korean Ministry of Foreign Affairs is planning to remove the “previous departure place” and “next destination” fields from its e-arrival card system. The plan, reached after interagency consultations, is under review and aims to simplify entry procedures and align the electronic form with the paper version, a South Korean ministry official said. The fields — which appeared only on the electronic form
RSS