According to the surveillance datacompiled by the Taiwan Centers for Disease Control (Taiwan CDC), Zika outbreakshave continued to occur around the world. Thus far,about 35 countries, areas and/or territories worldwide, primarily in Latin America and the Caribbean region, havereported local outbreaks of Zika virus infection. Since the first outbreakreported in Brazil during the second half of 2015, Zika virus has continued to spread. Besides Europe, the U.S. and Canada, China has reported a travel-related Zika case in a 39-year-old male who returned to China from Venezuela. In the meantime, Taiwan CDC is still in the process of gatheringmore information about the case. As of now, only one importedcase of Zika virus infection in a Thai national detected at the airport inTaiwan on January 10, 2016, no other cases of Zika virus infection have been identified in Taiwan.

In preparation for and response to the ongoing Zika outbreaks, the Obama administrationhas sought NTD$ 60 billion in emergency funding. The funding is aimed at stepping up control and prevention efforts bothat home and overseas, including research efforts for diagnostics, treatment andvaccine. Taiwan CDC will continue to closelymonitor the development of these efforts in order to formulate relevantpreparedness and response efforts. The WHO's Pan American Health Organization (PAHO)estimated approximately 500,000 and 1.5 million Zika cases occurred in the PAHO region and expected around 3 million to 4 million cases to occur this year. Among the Zika-related deaths reported in countries,including Colombia and Suriname, some of them had Guillaine-Barre syndrome(GBS) or chronic medical conditions. The number of microcephaly  cases reported inBrazil has continued to increase. A cumulative total of 4,700 microcephaly cases have been reported in Brazil. In addition, some countries,areas and/or territories have observed an increase in the number of GBS casesreported. Although the relationship between Zika virus infection and microcephaly and GBS has not been scientifically proven,WHO still strongly suspect a causal link. At the moment, there has been no significant increase in the number of microcephaly cases in Taiwan. Taiwan CDC willcontinue to closely monitor the numbers of microcephaly and GBS cases in Taiwan and urged physicians to heighten vigilance.

During 2015 and 2016, a total of 18 countries have reported a few imported Zika cases from the Americas, Thailand, Tonga, and Samoa, including 12 countries in the European Union, including Netherlands, Finland, Germany,Italy, the U.K., Spain, Switzerland, Denmark, Portugal, Ireland, France, and Sweden,the U.S., Canada, Israel, New Zealand, Australia, China and Taiwan. Since2013, imported Zika cases from countries, including Malaysia, Thailand,Maldives and Indonesia, have been reported. This year, Thailand has reportedonly one local case of Zika virus infection. In preparednessand response to the potential threats of the ongoing Zika transmission posed to Taiwan, Taiwan CDC has issued a travel notice of Level 2: Alert for Zika virusfor 35 countries in Latin America and the Caribbean region, and a travel noticeof Level 1: Watch for Zika virus for four countries in Asia, including Indonesia, Malaysia, Thailand, and Maldives.

Taiwan CDC points out that the incubation periodfor Zkia virus infection is about 3 to 12 days. When bitten by an infectedmosquito, symptoms appear 3 to 12 days after the bite. Typical symptoms include fever accompanied by a maculopapularrash, joint pain, or conjunctivitis. Other symptoms include headache, musclepain and pain behind the eyes. Although the disease is usually mild, there havebeen reports of congenital microcephaly and even deaths in babies of mothers who were infected with Zika virus while pregnant. Hence, Taiwan CDC advises pregnant women and women planning their pregnancy to postpone their trips toareas where Zika virus is active. Travelers visiting affected areas are urgedto take precautions such as wearing light-colored clothing, long sleeves andlong pants, applying officially approved mosquito repellent to exposed parts ofthe body, staying at accommodations installed with window screens, screen doorsor air conditioners. If symptoms develop within two weeks of their return, please seek immediate medical attention and inform the physician of their travel history. 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).