Two cases of enterovirus 71 (EV71) were reported last week, the Centers for Disease Control (CDC) said yesterday, adding that it was a warning sign, as the virus has not been detected for more than a year.
Parents are advised to remind their children to practice good hand hygiene, it said.
Guo Hung-wei (郭宏偉), director of the CDC’s Epidemic Intelligence Center, said that 165,230 people visited a hospital for diarrhea last week, which is a high number.
Photo courtesy of the Taoyuan Department of Public Health
Most of the diarrhea case clusters were caused by norovirus infection, but there were also enterovirus cases, and weekly caseloads are slowly increasing, Guo said.
Most of last week’s enterovirus cases had Enterovirus D68 (EV-D68), but two young children in northern Taiwan had EV71, weekly enterovirus data showed.
One of the EV71 cases is a one-year-old boy who had a fever and fatigue, while the other is a four-year-old girl who had a fever, sore throat and mouth ulcers, CDC physician Lin Yung-ching (林詠青) said.
While their family members did not have symptoms, classmates at their nursery and preschool had enterovirus infections, Lin said.
“EV71 infection can cause nervous system complications, including encephalitis, meningitis and even acute flaccid paralysis,” he said.
Mild symptoms include herpangina (blister-like sores in the mouth and throat) and foot-and-mouth disease, Lin said, adding that the four-year-old girl’s ulcers were a typical symptom.
“There has been no enterovirus outbreak in the past three years, so many young children have never been infected with an enterovirus and do not have immunity, making cluster infections more likely,” he said.
Enteroviruses mainly spread through respiratory droplets and direct contact with contaminated objects, so parents should remind their children to wash their hands frequently and wear a mask if they have symptoms, Lin said.
People should seek medical attention if suspected symptoms occur and rest at home, he added.
CDC Deputy Director-General Philip Lo (羅一鈞) said the two EV71 cases are a warning sign, as the virus has not been detected in Taiwan for more than a year.
There have been large outbreaks in the past, and the virus can cause severe complications, so the CDC plans to tell healthcare facilities to be cautious and ask schools and parents to remind young children to practice good hand hygiene, he said.
Children aged five or under are at higher risk of severe complications, and parents should seek medical attention immediately if their children are persistently sleepy or repeatedly vomiting, or if they have concentration issues, fatigue, weakness of the limbs, myoclonic jerks, shortness of breath or a rapid heartbeat when their body temperature is normal, Lin said.
Meanwhile, three cases of severe flu complications were reported last week: one with the influenza A (H1N1) virus and two with the influenza A (H3N2) virus, Lin said, adding that they were all over the age of 50 and did not get vaccinated this flu season.
Separately, the Central Epidemic Command Center yesterday reported 9,860 new local COVID-19 cases, 225 imported cases and 28 deaths.
The local case count is 8.8 percent lower than it was on Tuesday last week, it said.
The Centers for Disease Control (CDC) yesterday said that a surge in respiratory illnesses in China has been caused by at least seven types of pathogens, and small children, elderly people and immunocompromised people should temporarily avoid unnecessary visits to China. The recent outbreak of respiratory illnesses in China is mainly in the north and among children, CDC Deputy Director-General Philip Lo (羅一鈞) said on Monday. Data released by the Chinese National Health Commission on Sunday showed that among children aged one to four, the main pathogens were influenza viruses and rhinoviruses, while among children aged five to 14, the main pathogens
A New Taipei City hotpot restaurant could be fined after a rat dropped from the ceiling and landed on a customer’s plate last week, the New Taipei City Department of Health said yesterday after conducting an inspection. A woman recently posted on the “I am a Banciao resident” (我是板橋人) social media group saying that she had been eating with a friend at Chien Tu Shabu Shabu Hotpot Restaurant’s Shuangshi B branch in Banciao District (板橋). “While still eating, a big rat suddenly dropped down from the ceiling, landing on a plate next to a hotpot,” she said. “Later on, a member of
A new poll of Taiwanese voters found the top opposition candidate for president jumping past the ruling party’s hopeful into the lead position ahead of January’s election — the latest twist in a drama-filled race. Taiwan People’s Party (TPP) presidential candidate Ko Wen-je (柯文哲) had an approval rating of 31.9 percent versus 29.2 percent for the Democratic Progressive Party’s (DPP) presidential candidate Vice President William Lai (賴清德), the poll released yesterday by the Taiwanese Public Opinion Foundation showed. The Chinese Nationalist Party’s (KMT) presidential candidate, New Taipei City Mayor Hou You-yi (侯友宜), ranked third with 23.6 percent, according to the survey conducted
INCENTIVES: The province’s ‘21 measures’ include enhanced agricultural loans for Taiwanese farmers, and rent waivers and housing subsidies for Taiwanese start-ups China’s Fujian Province on Monday began implementing 15 economic measures targeting Taiwanese in its latest bid to fan pro-Beijing sentiment ahead of the Jan. 13 elections. Chinese state-run Xinhua news agency said the policies were part of “21 measures” unveiled in September by China for Fujian’s “integrated cross-strait development demonstration zone.” The partially implemented measures, which were created with input from Beijing, include reducing the wait time for Taiwanese applying for a visa from 20 days to five days and free public transit for Taiwanese older than 65, it said. Residents of Taiwan were granted use of the “all provincial Taiwanese entrepreneur compatriot
RSS