To strengthen this year’s dengue prevention and control efforts and lower the risk of a large-scale outbreak, besides closely monitor dengue activity, the Taiwan Centers for Disease Control (Taiwan CDC) has decided to implement the four major strategies for dengue prevention and control earlier than planned. The strategies are as follows:

1. Earlier this year, 23 million dollars has been approved to fund the Dengue Preparedness Plan for At-risk Cities/Counties as an attempt to aggressively supervise these local governments in implementing relevant preparedness efforts earlier.

2. Provide local governments with the Dengue Guidelines for Diagnosis, Treatment, Prevention and Control that was revised on February 1, 2016, which will serve as a reference for the disease control personnel.

3. Loosen restrictions on the use of dengue NS1 rapid test to facilitate early diagnosis and implementation of subsequent measures that prevent further transmission of the disease.

4. Establish a national level research institute for vector-borne diseases to assist local governments in implementing prevention efforts on the frontline.

In response to this year’s first indigenous dengue case confirmed in Tainan City, Taiwan CDC decided to establish the criteria for activating Epidemic Command Center in order to promptly provide appropriate assistance to the local government.

According to the statistics compiled by Taiwan CDC, this year, as of March 22, a total of 371 indigenous dengue cases, including 339 cases in Kaohsiung City, 20 cases in Pingtung County, 7 cases in Tainan City, and 5 cases in 5 other cities/counties, have been confirmed in Taiwan. On the other hand, a total of 64 imported dengue cases have been confirmed thus far this year and the majority of them were from countries in Southeast Asia such as Indonesia and the Philippines. One new case who resides in Annan District has been recently reported in Tainan City. On March 15, 2016, the case subsequently developed symptoms such as fever, fatigue and rashes on limbs. On March 22, after seeking medical attention, infection with dengue virus was confirmed in the case. The previous case developed symptoms on January 18, which is about two months ago.

As the weather continues to fluctuate, consecutive days of rain could have easily fill household containers with water. If the water-filled containers are not emptied and cleaned in time, they can quickly turn into vector breeding sites, increasing the risk of dengue transmission. Hence, Taiwan CDC urges the public to empty and clean any potential vector breeding sites in and around the home periodically and take precautions against mosquito bites in order to ward off infection. 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).