Taiwan’s two cases of hantavirus so far this year are on par with previous years’ case numbers, and the government is coordinating rat extermination work, so there should not be any outbreaks, Centers for Disease Control (CDC) Director-General Philip Lo (羅一鈞) said today in an interview with the Liberty Times (the Taipei Times’ sister newspaper).
An increase in rat sightings in Taipei and New Taipei City has raised concerns about the spread of hantavirus, as rats can carry the disease.
In January, a man in his 70s who lived in Taipei’s Daan District (大安) tested positive posthumously for hantavirus, Taiwan’s first case this year.
Photo: Chang Chia-juei, Taipei Times
In March, another man in his 70s with underlying health conditions in New Taipei City tested positive for the disease.
The number of cases is not an increase compared with the same period over the past four years, Lo said, adding that Taiwan is not prone to large-scale outbreaks of hantavirus.
However, there might be increases in cases from May to June and October to December, related to rodents’ peak breeding seasons in spring and autumn, he added.
Central and local governments are working together to control the rat infestation, with environmental agencies carrying out extermination work, Lo said.
The authorities have extensive experience in keeping rat populations under control, so there should not be an increase in hantavirus cases or any outbreaks, he said.
Hantavirus is mainly transmitted through the inhalation of aerosolized particles from rodent secretions or excretions, the CDC said.
A person can be infected if they inhale or come into contact with dust, objects or airborne particles contaminated with the virus, or if they are bitten or scratched by a rodent carrying the virus, it said.
The severity of symptoms after infection varies depending on the person’s immune system and the specific type of virus involved, it added.
The key to preventing hantavirus is rat control, the CDC said, adding that people should not let rodents stay or eat in their homes and should avoid contact with them.
Hantavirus has a fatty outer layer, so it can be inactivated by things like alcohol, disinfectants or household bleach, it said.
Inactivated means the virus has been rendered unable to infect or replicate, so it can no longer cause disease.
Hantavirus also does not tolerate heat well and loses its ability to infect after about 30 minutes at 60°C, the CDC added.
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