Eligibility for government-funded influenza antiviral drugs would be expanded from Jan. 20 to Feb. 28 to include seven groups considered to be at higher risk of spreading the virus, as the flu is predicted to enter an epidemic period at the end of the month, the Centers for Disease Control (CDC) said yesterday.
CDC communicable disease monitoring data released on Tuesday showed that the number of hospital visits for flu-like illnesses for the final week of last year was 82,161, which is about the same as the previous week.
CDC Deputy Director-General and spokesman Lin Min-cheng (林明誠) said the centers expect the flu might enter another epidemic period at the end of this month and reach a peak near the Lunar New Year holiday in the middle of next month.
Photo: Taipei Times
The CDC said while it typically broadens eligibility during the epidemic period, the expansion from Jan. 20 is a preemptive preparation.
The seven eligible groups are: epidemic prevention personnel in medical institutions (including registered medical practitioners and non-medical staff in healthcare facilities); caregivers and staff in nursing homes, long-term care facilities and similar institutions; childcare personnel in kindergartens, staff in childcare centers and at-home childcare providers (nannies); students in kindergarten, elementary school, junior-high school, senior-high school, vocational high school or the first three years of a five-year junior college; people living with or caring for an someone at high risk of severe influenza complications; poultry and livestock farming personnel, zoo staff and animal epidemic prevention personnel; as well as people who live in high-density facilities that are prone to cluster infections.
Lin said data over the past four weeks showed that influenza remains the most prevalent respiratory virus in Taiwan, accounting for 43.8 percent of cases, significantly higher than adenoviruses at 15.8 percent and rhinovirus at 15.4 percent.
In related news, there have been reports of a rise in rhinovirus cases in China.
Rhinovirus infections in Taiwan increased slightly recently, but rhinovirus and adenoviruses are still the second and third-most common viruses respectively in the nation, and have not exceeded the number of flu viruses, he said.
As more people are expected to travel near the Lunar New Year, viruses from abroad could enter the country, Lin said, adding that the CDC would continue to monitor viral activity changes in flu virus strains, as well as adenoviruses, the rhinovirus, the respiratory syncytial virus and other respiratory pathogens.
The rhinovirus tends to infect the upper respiratory tract and rarely extends to the lower respiratory tract, Lin said.
Typical symptoms include a runny nose and coughing, which are usually resolved in seven to 10 days, he said, adding that the fatality rate is near zero, so the health risk is not as significant as flu viruses.
“It usually only causes inconvenience to people’s daily lives, but does not cause incapacity to work,” Lin said.
In comparison, a flu infection often causes whole-body soreness and fatigue, he said, adding that the risk of severe complications is higher in elderly people and those with chronic diseases.
MacKay Memorial Hospital pediatrics director Chi Hsin (紀鑫) said common symptoms of a rhinovirus infection include coughing, a runny nose and a fever.
They could be classified into three types — A, B and C — of infections, he added.
For example, a rhinovirus C infection could trigger asthma exacerbation or an allergic reaction, and could extend to the lower respiratory tract, so it poses higher risk to children with asthma or chronic liver disease, he said.
A relapsing fever, loss of appetite or shortness of breath — especially if infants younger than one year old breathe more than 50 times a minute — in an infected child might be a sign of bacterial coinfection, Chi said.
If that is the case, the child should be taken to see a doctor as soon as possible, he added.
Linkou Chang Gung Memorial Hospital deputy superintendent Chiu Cheng-hsun (邱政洵) said people who are immunocompromised, or have underlying conditions or coinfection from other viruses might be at higher risk if they contract rhinovirus.
As for whether the rising number of people with rhinovirus in China is abnormal, Chiu said more observation is needed to see if there are virus mutations or increased coinfections.
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