On February 7, 2014, the Taiwan Centers for Disease Control (Taiwan CDC) announced the second imported case of measles confirmed this year. The case is imported from the Philippines like the first imported case. As the ongoing measles outbreaks in the Philippines have continued to persist, Taiwan CDC reminds travelers visiting the country to pay attention to personal hygiene, wash hands frequently, avoid touching mouth and nose as well as avoid bringing children below one year old and those have not completed the measles, mumps, and rubella (MMR) vaccine series to areas affected by measles to minimize the risk of infection.　

　
The case is a 7-month-old baby girl who resides in Hsinchu City and has not reached the age for measles vaccination. During mid-January, 2014, she traveled to the Philippines with her parents to visit relatives. It is determined that she came into contact with a suspected measles case in the Philippines. On January 18, she returned to Taiwan. On January 28, she sought medical attention when she developed cough, fever, running nose and rash and was diagnosed with measles. The case has been removed from isolation. The health authority has compiled a list of 398 contacts to monitor their health and administer follow up activities such as post-exposure prophylaxis until February 25. As of now, none of the contacts has developed suspected symptoms.　

　
As of January 11, 2014, a cumulative total of 1,163 suspected measles cases have been reported in the Philippines and infection has been confirmed in 4.7% of the suspected cases. The majority of the cases are from Manila, followed by Calabarzon and Luzon. Most of them aged between one and four years and 80% of the cases had not received the vaccine against measles. The local health authority has been urging the population in areas affected by measles to ensure all the children in the households have been timely vaccinated. Recently, a number of other countries have reported measles cases, including Singapore, Australia, New Zealand, Canada and Japan. Most cases became infected because they were unvaccinated against measles.  　

　
Measles is a highly infectious respiratory disease that is spread by contact with droplets from the nose, mouth or throat of an infected person, either directly or through aerosol transmission. Nevertheless, measles is vaccine-preventable. Beginning January 21, Taiwan CDC issued a a travel notice of Level 1: Watch for measles to the Philippines, urging travelers visiting the country to pay attention to personal hygiene and avoid brining children under one year old and those who have not completed the MMR vaccine series to the affected areas. On the other hand, some teenagers who have not been infected with measles or those who received the MMR vaccine when young but their measles antibody level has decreased over time are still at risk for infection. Therefore, they are advised to receive the MMR vaccine two to four weeks prior to their departure to prevent infection.　

　
Taiwan CDC reminds travelers to seek immediate medical attention when sick and advises patients to wear a mask during the entire stay in the hospital. Moreover, travelers planning to visit areas affected by measles are advised to visit the outpatient travel clinic at 12 contracted hospitals in the nation to determine the need for measles vaccination prior to their trip, and throughout the trip, pay attention to personal hygiene, wash hands frequently, avoid touching mouth and nose, and wearing a mask when visiting crowded places. Taiwan CDC also urges physicians to stay vigilant. If a patient develops symptoms pertaining to measles infection such as fever, rhinitis and rash, the physician should consider the patient’s recent travel history and vaccination history when diagnosing and report any suspected cases to the health authority as soon as possible. People who return from endemic areas and seek medical attention should inform the physician of their recent travel history to facilitate diagnosis and prompt treatment. For any questions or further information, please visit the Taiwan CDC’s website at http://www.cdc.gov.tw or call the toll-free Communicable Disease Reporting and Care Hotline, 1922, or 0800-024582 if calling from a cell phone.