The Centers for Disease Control (CDC) yesterday announced this year's first fatal case of hepatitis A. The victim was a 30-year-old man who died four days after he was hospitalized.
So far this year, 82 new cases of hepatitis A have been reported, 47 affecting people under the age of 30.
"We strongly advise young people to pay particular attention to food sanitation when dining out," said CDC Deputy Director Lin Ting (
Lin said the man was sent to a hospital in southern Taiwan on March 11. He was reportedly unconscious by the time he was brought in. The local CDC was notified the next day of his case. The man died of liver and kidney failure on March 14.
Autopsy reports later confirmed the underlying cause of death was hepatitis A, Lin said, urging people, especially those who habitually eat out, to take extra precautionary measures to inspect the cleanliness of food in restaurants.
"In earlier years, hepatitis A was very prevalent in Taiwan. Most people above the age of 50 are carriers. However, the drastic improvement in water and food sanitation efforts by the government has greatly reduced the transmission of the disease," Lin said.
But the high rate of infection this year so far, he said, has become an alarming cause of worry for the government.
Hepatitis A is a liver disease caused by the hepatitis A virus. The symptoms include jaundice, nausea, vomiting, fatigue, loss of appetite, diarrhea, abdominal pain and fever.
It is usually spread from person to person by contact with the stool of a person infected with hepatitis A. According to CDC statistics, only 42 new cases of hepatitis A infection were reported at this time last year. The numbers for the previous four years were 57, 62, 49 and 45.
The sharp increase this year, especially among people under the age of 30, shows that young people are more prone to the disease.
The young people's lack of antibodies and their habit of eating out, coupled with increasing tourism to and from Southeast Asia and China have all contributed to the recent hike, he said.
A hepatitis A vaccine is available in Taiwan. Those who are interested in getting boosters should contact their local health authority. The cost for adults is approximately NT$1,500 to NT$2,000 for each dosage and NT$1,000 for children. People must receive dosages to gain the maximum protection against the infectious disease.
The Mainland Affairs Council (MAC) yesterday said it is fully aware of the situation following reports that the son of ousted Chinese politician Bo Xilai (薄熙來) has arrived in Taiwan and is to marry a Taiwanese. Local media reported that Bo Guagua (薄瓜瓜), son of the former member of the Political Bureau of the Central Committee of the Communist Party of China, is to marry the granddaughter of Luodong Poh-Ai Hospital founder Hsu Wen-cheng (許文政). The pair met when studying abroad and arranged to get married this year, with the wedding breakfast to be held at The One holiday resort in Hsinchu
The Taipei Zoo on Saturday said it would pursue legal action against a man who was filmed climbing over a railing to tease and feed spotted hyenas in their enclosure earlier that day. In videos uploaded to social media on Saturday, a man can be seen climbing over a protective railing and approaching a ledge above the zoo’s spotted hyena enclosure, before dropping unidentified objects down to two of the animals. The Taipei Zoo in a statement said the man’s actions were “extremely inappropriate and even illegal.” In addition to monitoring the hyenas’ health, the zoo would collect evidence provided by the public
A decision to describe a Chinese Ministry of Foreign Affairs statement on Singapore’s Taiwan policy as “erroneous” was made because the city-state has its own “one China policy” and has not followed Beijing’s “one China principle,” Deputy Minister of Foreign Affairs Tien Chung-kwang (田中光) said yesterday. It has been a longstanding practice for the People’s Republic of China (PRC) to speak on other countries’ behalf concerning Taiwan, Tien said. The latest example was a statement issued by the PRC after a meeting between Singaporean Prime Minister Lawrence Wong (黃循財) and Chinese President Xi Jinping (習近平) on the sidelines of the APEC summit
‘SIGN OF DANGER’: Beijing has never directly named Taiwanese leaders before, so China is saying that its actions are aimed at the DPP, a foundation official said National Security Bureau (NSB) Director-General Tsai Ming-yen (蔡明彥) yesterday accused Beijing of spreading propaganda, saying that Chinese President Xi Jinping (習近平) had singled out President William Lai (賴清德) in his meeting with US President Joe Biden when talking about those whose “true nature” seek Taiwanese independence. The Biden-Xi meeting took place on the sidelines of the APEC summit in Peru on Saturday. “If the US cares about maintaining peace across the Taiwan Strait, it is crucial that it sees clearly the true nature of Lai and the ruling Democratic Progressive Party (DPP) in seeking Taiwanese independence, handles the Taiwan question with extra
RSS