The endemic period of enterovirus has ended, but as there were still 10,283 cases last week, caregivers of young children should not let their guards down, the Centers for Disease Control (CDC) said yesterday.
CDC Deputy Director-General and spokesman Lin Min-cheng (林明誠) said that the weekly number of hospital visits for enterovirus infection has been below the epidemic threshold of 11,000 cases for two consecutive weeks, meaning that the endemic period has “tentatively ended.”
However, people should remain cautious, as virus activity is known to fluctuate, as it did in 2023, when weekly cases switched between above and below the threshold for nearly three months, Lin said.
Photo: CNA
CDC Epidemic Intelligence Center Director Guo Hung-wei (郭宏偉) said that no new serious cases were reported last week.
However, there have been 19 serious cases, including nine deaths, reported so far this year, the highest for the period in six years, Guo said.
Of the 19 serious cases, 15 were newborns, he said, adding that 17 had echovirus 11, and one each had coxsackievirus A16 and coxsackievirus B5.
Hospital visit numbers remain relatively high, and five to seven cluster infections have been reported in each of the past four weeks, so there is still a considerably high risk of infection in local communities, he said.
Regarding enterovirus activity in nearby countries, cases have plateaued in South Korea, but remain at the highest in the period in three years; cases are falling in China and Hong Kong, but are still higher than in the same period last year; and cases in Thailand, Singapore and Japan have been steadily reducing, Guo said.
People with enterovirus are most contagious one week after symptoms, so young children who are infected are advised to stay home, rest and avoid contact with other young children, the CDC said.
People can excrete the virus in their feces for eight to 12 weeks after symptoms subside, so caregivers should remind children to practice good hand hygiene, while also frequently disinfecting environments with alcohol or diluted bleach, the centers said.
Good hand hygiene includes “wet, rub, rinse, clean and wipe,” meaning to wet the hands with tap water, rub the hands thoroughly with soap for at least 20 seconds, rinse with water, scoop water over the faucet to clean it and dry the hands with a towel, it said.
Children aged five or younger are at higher risk of developing severe complications from infection, so caregivers should pay close attention to their symptoms and take them to an emergency room if they develop unusual drowsiness, loss of consciousness, weakness or numbness in the limbs, myoclonus (involuntary muscle twitching or jerking), persistent vomiting, shortness of breath or rapid heartbeat, the CDC said.
Signs of severe illness in infected newborns might also include fever, low body temperature, low energy levels or reduced milk intake, and caregivers should seek immediate medical attention, as it can rapidly progress into myocarditis, encephalitis, multiple organ failure or other fatal complications if left untreated, it said.
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