On January 13, 2016, officials from the China Health and Family Planning Commission confirmed one H5N1 influenza infection in Sichuan Province, which is the first case in the province since April 2015. The Taiwan Centers for Disease Control (Taiwan CDC) decided to raise the travel notice level for Sichuan Province, China to Level 2: Alert for avian influenza and urges travelers visiting China to heighten their vigilance for avian influenza and practice good personal hygiene and avoid contact with poultry and birds and consume only thoroughly cooked poultry and eggs in order to ward off infection.

The case is a 42-year-old male who resides in Chengdu City, Sichuan Province, China. Prior to his disease onset, he was exposed to live poultry. On December 27, 2015, he sought medical attention after experiencing symptoms, including fever. On January 2, 2016, he was transferred to a hospital for further treatment as his conditions worsened and he was diagnosed with severe pneumonia. On January 13, infection with H5N1 influenza was confirmed in the case. Currently, the case is in critical condition. The local health authority deemed the case to be a sporadic case and had disinfected the case’s residence and surrounding environment. As of now, none of the 58 close contacts had developed suspected symptoms.

Since 2014, a cumulative total of 8 H5N1 influenza infections have been confirmed in China, including 3 in Yunnan Province, 2 in Sichuan Province, and 1 each in Jiangsu Province, Hunan Province, and Guangxi Province. Further, the majority of them have exposure history to live poultry. 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, Shanghai City, and Sichuan Province, 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).