On June 29, 2010, Taiwan CDC announced the 8th confirmed case of indigenous dengue fever since March this year. The patient is a 48-year-old male who lives in Gushan District, Kaohsiung City, with no foreign travel record. He developed fever, cough, backache and diarrhea on June 23. He first visited two healthcare institutions, but was later hospitalized on June 27 as symptoms persisted. On June 29, the hospital notified Taiwan CDC about the case and Taiwan CDC then confirmed indigenous dengue fever in the case. According to the epidemiologic investigation, the case spends most of his time at his living and working places and he lives about 150 meters away from the residence of the 6th and 7th confirmed cases reported since March. Relevant health authorities had promptly reacted to rectify the situation.
As of June 29, 2010, 122 confirmed cases of dengue fever, including 46 indigenous cases and 76 imported cases, have been reported this year. From March till now there have been 8 cases and all of them live in Kaohsiung city. During the same period last year, only 1 case of indigenous dengue fever was confirmed during the same period last year.
Apart from a noticeable increase in the number of dengue fever cases, Taiwan CDC warns that dengue fever has also occurred earlier this year than that in the previous year. The public should stay alert and take necessary self-protection such as preventing mosquito bites and seeking medical attention as soon as when suffering from suspicious symptoms. Moreover, Taiwan CDC urges the public to take part in the government’s preventive measures and clean up the vector breeding sites around their residences to effectively prevent the transmission of dengue fever and protect their health. When the vector breeding sites around residences are discovered, the authority will send the responsible residents a clean-up request. According to Article 70 of the Communicable Disease Control Act, failure to comply with such request is punishable by a fine varying from NT$ 3,000 to NT$ 15,000.
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