The nation’s first incident of whooping cough was reported in southern Taiwan, while the first case of hantavirus infection was reported in the north on Tuesday, the Centers for Disease Control and Prevention (CDC) said yesterday.
The first case of whooping cough this year was a two-month-old baby girl, the CDC said.
The infant first exhibited symptoms of coughing and a runny nose on Jan. 2 and was hospitalized on Jan. 18 due to a worsening cough, it added.
Photo: Lin Hui-chin, Taipei Times
The CDC said the baby’s test results came back on Tuesday positive for whooping cough.
The health authorities investigating the incident, and have identified seven family members as at risk, with one already exhibiting possible symptoms, the CDC said.
The CDC said that whooping cough incidents among infants each year since 2020 stood at 5, 0, 2, 0, 33 and 1 respectively, with patients mostly being infants under three months old, or 29.3 percent, while others were children aged 13 to 19, or 24.4 percent.
The CDC said initial symptoms of whooping cough are very similar to the common cold and are easily overlooked and passed on to infants or children.
People who exhibit short bursts of severe coughs, develop a wheezing sound when they breathe, or vomit after coughing should see a doctor immediately, the CDC said.
Separately, the Taipei Department of Health on Tuesday reported the first known case of hantavirus infection this year.
A 50 year-old female in Wenshan District (文山) developed a fever, cough and dizziness on Jan. 1 after coming in contact with a rat at her work in a traditional market.
The woman was hospitalized after testing positive for hantavirus on Monday and has now been released from the hospital.
The department said confirmed infections of hantavirus nationally over the past three years stood at 5, 6 and 3 cases respectively, while cases in Taipei at the same time stood at 1, 2 and 0 cases respectively.
Hantavirus is usually spread by contact with rodents’ body fluids and excrement, and the most common form of transmission is through breathing in the virus, the department said.
The primary method of prevention is to remove the presence of rodents, and to prevent contact with rodents and their excrements, the department said.
Residences, restaurants, hotels, food stalls, food factories and traditional markets should all take stronger measures to sanitize the environment and adopt stronger rodent prevention methods, it said.
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