Enterovirus infections entered the epidemic stage last week, the Centers for Disease Control (CDC) said yesterday, as it reported the nation’s first two Zika virus cases this year, adding that cases of enterovirus, COVID-19, influenza and mpox are rising.
CDC Epidemic Intelligence Center Deputy Director Lee Chia-lin (李佳琳) said there were 11,252 hospital visits due to enteroviruses last week, exceeding the epidemic threshold of 11,000 weekly visits, an increase of 10 percent compared with the week before, and the trend seems to be continuing.
Of the enterovirus types identified at contracted laboratories, the Coxsackie A virus accounted for the vast majority of cases, including 71.8 percent identified as Coxsackievirus A4, she said.
Photo: Lin Hui-chin, Taipei Times
CDC physician Lin Yung-ching (林詠青) said that no new severe cases of enterovirus were reported last week, but a new mild case of enterovirus 71 was confirmed in a three-year-old girl.
Her symptoms began with mouth sores, followed by a fever before she was hospitalized for two days as her symptoms continued, Lin said.
While her family was not infected, cases of enterovirus were reported at a childcare center she attended, he said.
He said that parents should change their clothes and wash their hands thoroughly when returning home and before approaching their child, and if their child is infected, pay close attention to signs of serious complications and seek medical attention immediately.
The Zika cases, both imported, were reported last week in two family members in their 30s, living in northern Taiwan, who visited the Maldives between April 19 and April 26, Lee said.
They began experiencing symptoms on April 27 and Monday last week, before testing positive for the virus, she said.
They are the nation’s first Zika cases since 2020, when two cases were reported, she said, adding that 28 imported cases have been reported in Taiwan since the disease was listed as a notifiable communicable disease in 2016.
They mainly came from southeast Asia.
Symptoms of Zika are similar to and often milder than dengue fever, and the virus can be transmitted through mosquito bites, from mothers to newborns during pregnancy, sexual activity and blood transfusion, Lin said, adding that the most effective preventive measure is to avoid mosquitoes in areas with Zika.
The incubation period is three to 14 days, so people who suspect they have symptoms of Zika after returning from countries where it is present should seek medical attention, he said.
As about 80 percent of people infected with Zika show no symptoms, the CDC recommends practicing safe sex or abstinence for three months for men and two months for women after returning from areas with reported Zika cases, he said.
Regarding COVID-19, Lee said that average daily cases of severe complications of the disease increased to 116 last week, from 114 in the previous week.
Genome sequencing showed that the Omicron BA.2.75 subvariant of SARS-CoV-2 remains the dominant strain in Taiwan, followed by Omicron XBB, which accounts for most of the imported cases.
CDC Deputy Director-General Philip Lo (羅一鈞) said that data suggest that XBB would soon replace BA.2.75 as the dominant strain in Taiwan, so the risk of reinfection is expected to increase.
However, as COVID-19 bivalent vaccines provide protection against the strains, people who have not received a shot this year are recommended to do so, while elderly people and those with underlying health conditions should wear a mask in crowded public settings, he said.
Separately, 63,485 hospital visits for flu-like illnesses were reported last week, and the trend seems to be growing, Lee said.
Twenty-eight cases of severe flu and two flu-related deaths were confirmed last week, she said, adding that 24 of the cases and the deceased were infected with influenza A (H1N1) virus.
Fifteen new mpox cases — 14 local and one imported — were reported last week, Lin said.
The local cases include five in Taichung, four in Taipei, two in Taoyuan, two in New Taipei City and one in Tainan.
He said that 20,000 vials of mpox vaccine, enough for about 60,000 people, arrived in Taiwan on Monday, and are undergoing lot release testing.
They are to be provided as a first dose for eligible recipients and second dose for the 25,555 people who already received an initial shot, he said.
The CDC’s vaccination willingness registration online platform is to be closed, and those seeking to book an appointment in the third phase of vaccination must directly contact contracted healthcare facilities, arranged by local health departments, the centers said.
Details are to be announced next week, it said.
Regarding two suspected cases of hepatitis A infection reported in Taipei and New Taipei City on Monday, a re-examination of their blood samples showed that they were negative for the immunoglobulin M antibody and positive for immunoglobulin G, indicating they did not contract acute hepatitis A recently, but have immunity against it, Lo said.
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