The nation’s second dengue-related death this year was confirmed last week, that of a woman in her 80s, the Centers for Disease Control (CDC) said yesterday as it reported 556 new local dengue fever cases for last week, bringing the total this year to 2,135.
The CDC also reported 10 new local cases of mpox, a daily average of 50 new local COVID-19 cases, 37 severe influenza complications and eight flu-related deaths last week.
CDC Epidemic Intelligence Center Deputy Director Lee Chia-lin (李佳琳) said that last week’s 556 new local dengue fever cases was the highest weekly number this year, with the majority in Tainan, which reported 471 cases, followed by Yunlin County (61 cases), Kaohsiung (17) and one case each in seven other administrative regions.
Photo: CNA
The risk of local dengue fever infection continues to increase, Lee said, adding that as of Monday, 2,135 locally acquired cases had been reported this year.
With New Taipei City, Taoyuan and Hsinchu County last week reporting their first cases of the year, 14 regions have been affected this year, she said.
CDC physician Lin Yung-ching (林詠青) said that Taiwan’s second dengue-related death was confirmed last week.
A woman in her 80s who lived in Yunlin County and had chronic health conditions, including hypertension, diabetes and heart issues, was hospitalized on Aug. 8 for a fever and altered consciousness, Lin said.
She tested positive for dengue fever, with symptoms including a low blood platelet count and pneumonia, he said.
She died on Tuesday last week, he said.
Dengue outbreaks have also been reported in several southeast Asian and South American countries, so the CDC has raised its epidemic travel advisory for Argentina, Bolivia, Brazil, Malaysia, Peru, Thailand and Vietnam to a level 2 alert, advising people who are visiting those countries to take enhanced precautions against dengue fever.
Meanwhile, Lee said a daily average of 50 new local COVID-19 cases were reported last week, 17 percent lower than the previous week.
Genomic surveillance showed that 91 percent of the cases were caused by Omicron subvariant XBB, including four with the new EG.5 subvariant, which was labeled a “variant of interest” by the WHO this month, she said.
Ninety-nine percent of the imported cases were XBB, including 33 percent with EG.5, she said.
Ten local mpox cases were reported last week in men aged 20 to 50, with three living in northern Taiwan, two in central areas and five in the south, she said.
There were 11,331 hospital visits for enterovirus infections last week, higher than the epidemic threshold, and outbreaks might increase as young students return to school, Lee said, adding that 74,130 hospital visits for flu-like illnesses, 37 cases of severe complications and eight flu-related deaths were confirmed last week.
In other health news, CDC Deputy Director-General and spokeswoman Tseng Shu-hui (曾淑慧) said that only one water sample taken from stagnant water in the basement of an indoor water park in New Taipei City tested positive for Naegleria fowleri, known as the “brain-eating amoeba.”
A woman visited the park before she died of naegleriasis, which is caused when the amoeba reaches brain tissue, generally through the nasal passage.
Of the 56 specimens collected from 10 areas in the water park, 55 tested negative, Tseng said.
The water that contained the positive sample does not circulate with water in the recreational facilities at the venue, she said.
The CDC has instructed such facilities to follow guidelines for infectious disease prevention and sanitation control, including testing the pH and free chlorine concentration level of the water at least four times a day, and only allowing people to enter the water when the free chlorine concentration is between 1mg/L and 3mg/L.
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