Via The China Post: Still not past Dengue, influenza and EV71 high-risk period: CDC. Excerpt:
Dengue fever cases increased by 67 in the past week, with 30 new cases in Tainan and 36 cases in Kaohsiung, the Centers for Disease Control (CDC, 疫病管制局) said yesterday.
Due to suitable incubation temperatures for the virus during October and November, the disease is still in its high risk infection period, according to the CDC. Dengue fever is now prevalent in Tainan and Kaohsiung, with patients middle aged or older more vulnerable to infection, said CDC Disease Prevention Doctor Luo Yi-jun (羅一鈞).
Included in the 36 new cases of dengue fever in Kaohsiung this past week were two cases of dengue hemorrhagic fever which a 49-year-old woman and a 75-year-old man both contracted. Both have shown symptoms such as high fever, bleeding, pain in muscles and joints, low levels of blood platelets, and blood plasma leakage. Both have received suitable medical treatment and have successfully been discharged from the hospital, according to the CDC.
This year there have been a total of 605 recorded cases of dengue fever, including 12 cases of dengue hemorrhagic fever, resulting in two deaths, according to CDC statistics.
The CDC reminds the public to watch out for containers or ditches around residential areas where water can collect to create the perfect breeding grounds for dengue fever carriers – mosquitoes.
Enterovirus risks still lingers
A 6-year-old boy contracted a new strain of enterovirus 71 (EV71) in Hualien, the CDC announced in a Taipei conference yesterday.
On Sept. 29, the 6-year-old boy showed a wide variety of symptoms including mild respiratory illness, hand rash breakout, muscle seizures and so on. Doctors diagnosed him as being critically ill with a severe case of enterovirus. After intensive care and close medical attention, the patient fully recovered and has been discharged from the hospital. Other family members, classmates, and friends exposed to the patient have all been screened for the virus, all of whom remain clear and healthy.
The CDC Deputy Director Zhou Zhi-hao (周志浩) said that up to Oct.8 of this year there has been a total of 147 enterovirus cases recorded, with 144 cases of EV71 type virus. There have been two recorded deaths.
