Wed, May 17, 2023 page3

• COVID-19 cases rise 33 percent

  ‘FOURTH WAVE’: Genomic sequencing showed that Omicron XBB viral strains have replaced Omicron BA.2.75 to be the dominant variant in Taiwan, a health official said

  • By Lee I-chia / Staff reporter
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  The daily reported number of moderate to severe cases of COVID-19 increased 33 percent last week from a week earlier, indicating a fourth wave of local Omicron infections, the Centers for Disease Control (CDC) said yesterday.

  CDC Epidemic Intelligence Center Director Guo Hung-wei (郭宏偉) said the average daily number of moderate to severe case last week was 155, up from 117 the previous week.

  Prescriptions for oral anti-viral drugs to treat the disease also rose, while the average positivity rate from tests at residential care facilities increased to 1.3 percent last week, he said.

  

  Centers for Disease Control Epidemic Intelligence Center Director Guo Hung-wei speaks at a news conference at the center in Taipei yesterday.

  Photo: Lin Hui-chin, Taipei Times

  Genomic sequencing data showed that Omicron XBB viral strains have replaced Omicron BA.2.75 to become the dominant variant of SARS-CoV-2 in Taiwan, with 54 percent of local cases last week being Omicron XBB, he said.

  CDC Deputy Director-General and spokesman Philip Lo (羅一鈞) said the numbers indicate that COVID-19 cases are rising.

  These Omicron infections can be considered the fourth COVID-19 wave in the nation, Lo said.

  People with a high risk of serious illness after infection are advised to see a doctor and ask for an oral anti-viral drug prescription if they test positive for COVID-19, and get immediate medical attention if they develop signs of severe complications, he said.

  As the Central Epidemic Command Center was disbanded two weeks ago and the WHO on May 5 ended its Public Health Emergency of International Concern for COVID-19, many countries no longer require vaccination certificates, so the digital certificates showing vaccination status, test results and isolation orders would end on May 31. Lo said.

  People can apply for the certificates at https://gov.tw/8ft until midnight on May 30, he said.

  Meanwhile, the flu accounted for 45.6 percent of respiratory viruses identified at contracted labs and there were 67,733 hospital visits for flu-like illnesses last week, Guo said, adding that the upward trend seems to be continuing.

  Fourteen new cases of serious flu complications and two flu-related deaths were confirmed last week, with all of them unvaccinated this flu season, he said, adding that 11 of those with severe symptoms and the two who died had the influenza A (H1N1) virus, while the other three had influenza A (H3N2).

  CDC physician Lin Yung-ching (林詠青) said the two people who died were a woman in her 70s in eastern Taiwan, who had several underlying health problems and died of pneumonia, and a five-year-old boy in northern Taiwan, who died of encephalitis.

  The boy had a fever, coughing and a runny nose early this month and received medication at a clinic, but was lethargic, vomiting and had diarrhea the next day, Lin said.

  He tested positive for H1N1, Lin said, adding that the child was admitted to an emergency room as his symptoms rapidly worsened, including altered consciousness and an unsteady gait.

  The boy was diagnosed with encephalitis from a flu infection and given anti-viral medication, but his heart stopped the second day he was in hospital and three days after the onset of symptoms.

  There were 11,916 hospital visits for enterovirus infections last week, including a five-year-old with a mild case of enterovirus 71, Gou said, adding that the upward trend of new cases is continuing.

  Twelve new local cases of mpox were confirmed last week among men aged 20 to 40, Lo said, adding that all of them were not vaccinated against the disease.

  The third phase of mpox vaccination began yesterday, he added.

  There are 79 clinics and hospitals where people can directly book a vaccine appointment, as the online willingness registration platform is no longer in use, he said.

  Members of high-risk groups who are eligible for the mpox vaccine are advised to get it as soon as possible, and about 27,000 people who have had a first dose can book an appointment for a second dose, as long as it has been at least 28 days since their first, Lo said.

  The first dose can provide 40 to 80 percent protection after 14 days and the second dose can increase that protection to about 90 percent, he said.
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