The Department of Health's Center for Disease Control (CDC) said yesterday that tests had confirmed that a man in Taitung has been diagnosed with malaria.
The CDC is concerned that, according to World Health Organization standards, it is the first case of the disease contracted locally.
"We know this is an introduced [domestically transmitted] case because the patient never traveled abroad," said Shih Wen-yi (施文儀), deputy director-general of the CDC. "We are still in the process of investigating and more information will be forthcoming. But we believe that this man was infected by people who had traveled abroad recently," said Shih Wen-yi (施文儀), deputy director-general of the CDC.
According to Shih, since the WHO declared Taiwan malaria-free in 1965, Taiwan has continued to see isolated cases of malaria each year.
Nineteen cases have been reported so far this year. Eighteen of these were a result of people being infected abroad, while the most recent case was contracted in Taiwan.
"One case of malaria is not a big deal, but if it begins to spread to more people, then we have a problem," Shih said.
The CDC stated that of the roughly 17 types of mosquitoes in Taiwan, only the Anopheles minimus spreads the disease.
These mosquitoes inhabit Pingtung, Tainan, Taitung, Hualien and Kaohsiung counties.
The mosquito can be identified by its five black and white stripes and a body angled upward.
The infected patient, a 57-year-old Aboriginal man from Taitung County, has been receiving treatment in the Mackay Memorial Hospital since he began showing symptoms on Tuesday.
Shih warned the public to stay away from mountainous areas and to avoid going out at night. He also said that those planning to travel to areas where malaria is common should visit the CDC before leaving.
According to Shih, some 3 million people die of malaria each year worldwide. He said, however, that given modern medical knowledge, identified cases of malaria are easily treatable.
Symptoms of the disease include fever, headache, excessive sweating, nausea and diarrhea. Because the incubation period ranges from 11 to 28 days, CDC officials are investigating the places the infected man visited over the past month.
The Taitung City Government has established a group to cooperate with the CDC in its investigations.
‘TAIWAN-FRIENDLY’: The last time the Web site fact sheet removed the lines on the US not supporting Taiwanese independence was during the Biden administration in 2022 The US Department of State has removed a statement on its Web site that it does not support Taiwanese independence, among changes that the Taiwanese government praised yesterday as supporting Taiwan. The Taiwan-US relations fact sheet, produced by the department’s Bureau of East Asian and Pacific Affairs, previously stated that the US opposes “any unilateral changes to the status quo from either side; we do not support Taiwan independence; and we expect cross-strait differences to be resolved by peaceful means.” In the updated version published on Thursday, the line stating that the US does not support Taiwanese independence had been removed. The updated
‘CORRECT IDENTIFICATION’: Beginning in May, Taiwanese married to Japanese can register their home country as Taiwan in their spouse’s family record, ‘Nikkei Asia’ said The government yesterday thanked Japan for revising rules that would allow Taiwanese nationals married to Japanese citizens to list their home country as “Taiwan” in the official family record database. At present, Taiwanese have to select “China.” Minister of Foreign Affairs Lin Chia-lung (林佳龍) said the new rule, set to be implemented in May, would now “correctly” identify Taiwanese in Japan and help protect their rights, the Ministry of Foreign Affairs said in a statement. The statement was released after Nikkei Asia reported the new policy earlier yesterday. The name and nationality of a non-Japanese person marrying a Japanese national is added to the
AT RISK: The council reiterated that people should seriously consider the necessity of visiting China, after Beijing passed 22 guidelines to punish ‘die-hard’ separatists The Mainland Affairs Council (MAC) has since Jan. 1 last year received 65 petitions regarding Taiwanese who were interrogated or detained in China, MAC Minister Chiu Chui-cheng (邱垂正) said yesterday. Fifty-two either went missing or had their personal freedoms restricted, with some put in criminal detention, while 13 were interrogated and temporarily detained, he said in a radio interview. On June 21 last year, China announced 22 guidelines to punish “die-hard Taiwanese independence separatists,” allowing Chinese courts to try people in absentia. The guidelines are uncivilized and inhumane, allowing Beijing to seize assets and issue the death penalty, with no regard for potential
‘UNITED FRONT’ FRONTS: Barring contact with Huaqiao and Jinan universities is needed to stop China targeting Taiwanese students, the education minister said Taiwan has blacklisted two Chinese universities from conducting academic exchange programs in the nation after reports that the institutes are arms of Beijing’s United Front Work Department, Minister of Education Cheng Ying-yao (鄭英耀) said in an exclusive interview with the Chinese-language Liberty Times (the Taipei Times’ sister paper) published yesterday. China’s Huaqiao University in Xiamen and Quanzhou, as well as Jinan University in Guangzhou, which have 600 and 1,500 Taiwanese on their rolls respectively, are under direct control of the Chinese government’s political warfare branch, Cheng said, citing reports by national security officials. A comprehensive ban on Taiwanese institutions collaborating or
RSS