The Centers for Disease Control (CDC) yesterday confirmed the nation’s third case of German measles this year, urging people who went to the same places as the patient during his contagious period to self-monitor their health for three weeks.
The patient is a 50-year-old man from Kaohsiung, who sought medical attention after suffering aches, dizziness, a rash and a fever on March 28, the centers said.
The CDC said the man probably contracted the virus during a trip to China’s Sichuan Province, categorizing him as an imported case.
“While the patient has now recovered from the disease, he visited several public places when he was infectious between March 22 and last Sunday, including Rueifong Night Market (瑞豐夜市) in Kaohsiung’s Zuoying District (左營) on the evening of March 28 and a McDonald’s in Siaogang District (小港) on the afternoon of March 29,” the CDC said.
People who were at the above locations and are experiencing symptoms such as a fever and a rash are urged to immediately put on a mask and seek medical care, it added.
As of yesterday evening, the CDC had managed to contact 42 individuals who had been in close contact with the man, including his family, colleagues and the medical personnel who treated him. They are to be monitored until tomorrow.
German measles, also known as rubella, is infectious for a period of seven days both before and after the appearance of the symptoms, with an incubation period of between 14 and 21 days. It can be transmitted by airborne droplets during the contagious period.
CDC statistics showed that of the three confirmed cases so far this year, two were imported — one from China, while the source of the other infection has not yet been identified — while the other was contracted locally.
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