A further seven cases of measles have been identified after an imported measles cluster spread last week, bringing the total cases to 12, Centers for Disease Control (CDC) Deputy Director-General Tseng Shu-hui (曾淑慧) said today.
It marks the highest number of cases within a single cluster in five years, with 1,014 people confirmed to have come into contact with the disease who are to be monitored until Jan. 8, the CDC said.
The CDC on Wednesday last week said that they had identified the first case of a measles cluster this year, after a man in his 40s was diagnosed with the disease in central Taiwan on Dec. 10.
Photo: Lin Huei-chin, Taipei Times
The man broke out in a fever with a runny nose, sore throat and other symptoms after returning from Vietnam, the CDC said.
He infected a fellow passenger on his flight, and the following day when he went to hospital for a consultation the outbreak spread to three other patients, it said.
The CDC reported a further seven cases today from a hospital in central Taiwan who were infected between Dec. 14 and 19, and who developed symptoms between Tuesday last week and Saturday.
The infected parties are three nurses in their 20s, a cleaner in her 30s, a doctor in her 40s, a relative of a patient in their 50s who came into contact with the disease at a hospital and a maintenance worker in his 20s, it said.
The hospital convened a meeting on Thursday last week to prepare responsive measures and laid out plans to vaccinate 1,149 hospital staff who required the measles, mumps and rubella (MMR) vaccination, including contracted workers and those in catering and retail, it said.
The CDC and the district health center would continue to supervise the hospital in implementing disease control measures and monitor the condition of exposed persons, it added.
According to CDC statistics, as of Monday, 26 cases of measles had been identified this year in patients aged from their 20s to 50s.
Seventeen were infected domestically, four of whom are from this latest cluster, and nine were infected internationally: three on a plane, one in Vietnam, two in Malaysia, one in Thailand and one in Cambodia, CDC data showed.
This year, infections have been higher than from 2020 to last year, which only saw up to two cases each year, it added.
Measles is a highly contagious disease that is infectious for four days before and after the onset of a rash, the CDC said.
The public should avoid unnecessary visits to healthcare facilities and hospitals, while infected patients and their families should avoid visiting crowded public areas, maintain good respiratory hygiene and cough into tissues to reduce risk of transmission, the CDC said.
If the public presents measles symptoms, they should seek medical attention immediately and notify healthcare professionals of any relevant travel history, it added.
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