In the evening of January 8, 2016, a 26-year-old male who resides in northern Taiwan voluntarily notified the quarantine officer at Taipei Songshan Airport upon his arrival from Jiangsu Province, China despite his normal body temperature and without having any symptoms. However, he had come into a suspected H7N9 influenza patient during his trip to China. After initial assessment by the quarantine officer at the airport, his risk of becoming infected with the virus is deemed low. Therefore, the passenger was allowed to return home after given relevant health education and being asked to conduct self-health management. In the same evening, the Taiwan Centers for Disease Control (Taiwan CDC) immediately contacted the relevant health authority in China to find out if any Taiwanese businessman in China had become infected with H7N9 influenza. As of now, the passenger has not experienced any symptoms and the Chinese health authority informed Taiwan CDC that the nasopharyngeal swab collected from the passenger in China tested negative for the H7N9 influenza virus.

Taiwan CDC appreciates the passenger’s vigilance and effort in voluntarily notifying the quarantine officer about his probable infection and complying with subsequent prevention measures and follow-up activities. As effective disease prevention and control require both government and public engagement efforts, Taiwan CDC urges the public to the passenger’s example and help ward off infectious diseases together.

According to the epidemiological investigation, the passenger visited his father who does business in Kunshan, Jiangsu Province, China in late December and he returned to Taiwan in the end of December. On January 5, when he was told that his father was severely ill, he visited China again. As his father was hospitalized in critical condition in the intensive care unit, he did not come into contact with his father. On January 5, besides the father, nasopharyngeal swabs were also collected from the passenger and a family friend who had previously come into contact with the father by the Chinese health authority. On January 11, the swabs came back negative for the H7N9 influenza virus. Only the father was tested positive for the virus. Taiwan CDC will continue to closely monitor the health of the passenger and his father. When necessary, Taiwan CDC will send a medical officer to Kunshan to better understand the father’s condition and conduct relevant health education to the Taiwanese businessmen and people living there.

Since October 1, 2015, a cumulative total of 23 H7N9 influenza infections, including 14 cases in Zhejiang Province, 3 cases in Guangdong Province, 3 cases in Jiangsu Province, 2 cases in Shanghai City, and 1 case in Jiangxi Province, have been confirmed in China. The majority of them are aged over 50 peasants and poultry workers and had a history of live poultry exposure. Since March 31, 2013, a cumulative total of 700 H7N9 influenza infections, including 275 deaths announced by WHO on December 14, 2015, have been confirmed in China (680), Hong Kong (13), Taiwan (4), Canada (2), and Malaysia (1). Currently, Taiwan CDC has issued a travel notice of Level 2: Alert for avian influenza to Zhejiang Province, Guangdong Province, Anhui Province, Hunan Province, Jiangxi Province, Jiangsu Province, and Shanghai City, and a travel notice of Level 1: Watch for avian influenza to the other provinces and cities in China, excluding Hong Kong and Macau.

Taiwan CDC advises travelers visiting China to practice good personal hygiene such as washing hands with soap and water frequently and putting on a mask when coughing and take preventive measures such as avoiding direct contact with poultry and birds or their droppings/dead bodies, and consuming only thoroughly cooked poultry and eggs to ward off avian influenza infection. If influenza-like illness symptoms develop upon arriving in Taiwan, please voluntarily notify the airline crew and the quarantine officer at the quarantine station in the airport. If the aforementioned symptoms such as fever and cough develop after returning to Taiwan, please put on a surgical mask and seek immediate medical attention. Moreover, please inform the physician of the recent travel and exposure history to facilitate diagnosis and treatment. For more information, please visit the Taiwan CDC website at http://www.cdc.gov.tw or call the toll-free Communicable Disease Reporting and Consultation Hotline, 1922 (or 0800-001922).