On April 24, 2013, the Taiwan Centers for Disease Control (Taiwan CDC) announced one new indigenous case of dengue fever confirmed in Taiwan, which is also this year’s first indigenous case of dengue fever in Pingtung City. The case is a 59-year-old female who resides in Chunrih Township, Pingtung County. She has a medical history of osteoarthritis. On April 2, she went tomb sweeping in Laiyi Village, Pingtung County. On April 10, she developed symptoms, including fever, joint pain and bone ache. On April 15, she was reported to the health authority as a suspected dengue case and infection with dengue virus was later confirmed. As of now, the case has recovered and been discharged from the hospital. A total of 116 contacts, including family members residing in the same household and those included for the expanded epidemiological investigation, are being investigated and followed up. Specimens have been collected from 6 contacts who have experienced fever for laboratory testing. The rest of the contacts have not developed suspected symptoms. As of April 23, a total of 17 indigenous cases of dengue fever and 57 imported cases of dengue fever have been confirmed in Taiwan this year.


In 2012, only one indigenous case of dengue fever was confirmed in Pingtung County. The case who resides in Wandan Village developed illness on November 19, 2012. The last outbreak involving 149 indigenous cases of dengue fever occurred in Pingtung County in 2011. Although no signs of an outbreak have thus far appeared, sporadic cases of dengue fever have been reported, which indicates the presence of vector breeding sites. As dengue vector mosquitoes are present in southern Taiwan year-round, Taiwan CDC reminds the public to stay vigilant and take necessary measures such as draining water containers and cleaning up vector breeding sites around their residences as well as preventing mosquito bites to effectively prevent the spread of dengue fever in the community. Taiwan CDC also advises the public to seek immediate medical attention when suspected symptoms such as ever, headache, retroorbital pain, arthralgia, myalgia, and rashes develop, and inform the doctor of any recent travel history and activity to facilitate prompt diagnosis. Taiwan CDC also urges physicians in areas at risk for dengue fever to remain vigilant and report a suspected case to the health authority as soon as possible to facilitate timely implementation of prevention measures and prevent further transmission of the disease.


Taiwan CDC stresses that everyone needs to participate in dengue control efforts in order to successfully contain the epidemic and urges the public to stay vigilant against dengue fever and take necessary measures such as draining water containers and cleaning up vector breeding sites around their residences as well as preventing mosquito bites to effectively prevent the spread of dengue fever and dengue hemorrhagic fever and protect their health and the health of their family. According to Article 70 of the Communicabe Disease Control Act, anyone who refuses, evades or obstructs disease control measures such as inspection decided by competent authorities or fails to notify the competent authorities of the presence of vector breeding sites that is later identified by competent authorities or clean up vector breeding sites as requested by competent authorities may be fined NT$ 3,000 up to NT$ 15,000. In light of the continuous occurrence of indigenous dengue cases in Southeast Asia, Taiwan CDC urges travelers visiting dengue-affected areas to take precautions against mosquito bites such as wearing light-colored clothing, long sleeves and long pants and applying officially approved mosquito repellent to exposed parts of the body to lower the risk of infection. Travelers returning from areas affected by dengue fever are advised to pay attention to their health. If they feel ill and experience symptoms pertaining to dengue fever, they should seek medical attention immediately and inform the physician of the recent travel history to facilitate prompt diagnosis and treatment and prevent local transmission.


For more information on dengue fever, please call the toll-free Communicable Disease Reporting and Care Hotline, 1922, or 0800-001922 if calling from a cell phone, or visit the Taiwan CDC’s website at http://www.cdc.gov.tw.