On August 12, 2016, the Central Epidemic Command Center for Zika Virus (CECC for Zika Virus) announced the fifth imported Zika case identified in Taiwan. The case is a 27-year-old Taiwanese male. In the early morning of August 11, when he arrived in Taiwan from St. Vincent and the Grenadines, he voluntarily contacted the quarantine officer at the airport about his symptoms, including fever, headache and muscle ache, since August 4 and the subsequent rash since August 6. Infection with Zika virus was laboratory confirmed in the case on August 12. As of now, the case is not experiencing any discomfort and has been placed in isolation to prevent further spread of the virus. 　　
Immediately after receiving report of the fifth imported Zika case from the airport quarantine officer, CECC for Zika Virus contacted the local health bureau to implement subsequent prevention measures, followed up on the health of the case and provided the case with relevant health education. Based on the viremic phase of his infection, the case should prevent mosquito bites and isolate himself till August 15, 2016 and follow the the “2226 Principle” to further spread. A travel notice of Level 2: Alert for Zika virus has been issued for St. Vincent and the Grenadines. Since the first indigenous Zika case was identified in St. Vincent and the Grenadines in February 2016, a cumulative total of 28 indigenous Zika cases have been confirmed in the country. The majority of the confirmed cases came from Bequia.
On August 11, 2016, the Taiwan Centers for Disease Control (Taiwan CDC) scaled up the travel notice level for Cayman Islands to Level 2: Alert for Zika virus according to the updates on recent local transmission of Zika virus released by the World Health Organization (WHO) on the same day. Since 2007, at least 66 countries, areas and/or territories worldwide, primarily in Latin America and the Caribbean region, have reported local outbreaks of Zika virus infection. Taiwan CDC has issued a travel notice of Level 2: Alert for Zika virus for 56 countries and territories, including 4 countries in Asia: Thailand, the Philippines, Vietnam and Indonesia. Moreover, during 2007 and 2015, about 10 countries, including Cambodia, Indonesia, Malaysia, Laos and Bangladesh, reported Zika outbreaks. Nonetheless, thus far in 2016, no Zika cases have been reported in those 10 countries. Hence, Taiwan CDC has issued a travel notice of Level 1: Watch for Zika virus for those countries. 　
Current scientific evidence has proved that Zika virus infection is usually mild in adults and suggested the occurrence of congenital microcephaly and even deaths in babies of mothers who were infected with Zika virus while pregnant. Therefore, pregnant women and women planning pregnancy are advised to postpone all unnecessary travels to Zika-affected areas. CECC for Zika Virus urges travelers returning to Taiwan from Zika-affected areas to follow the “2226 Principle” to prevent Zika transmission. The “2226 Principle” specifies that female travelers are urged to seek immediate medical attention if they develop suspected Zika symptoms within 2 weeks of their return from an affected-area and postpone pregnancy 2 months after their return regardless whether they develop suspected Zika symptoms, and male travelers, if they do not develop suspected Zika symptoms, are urged to avoid sex or use condoms correctly for 2 months after their return from an affected-area and if they develop suspected Zika symptoms, they are urged to avoid sex or use condoms correctly for 6 months after their return. Travelers visiting affected areas are urged to take precautions against mosquito bites such as wearing light-colored clothing, long sleeves and long pants, applying officially approved mosquito repellent to exposed parts of the body, staying at accommodations installed with window screens, screen doors or air conditioners. Further, Taiwan CDC urges travelers returning from affected areas to proactively contact the quarantine officer at the fever screening station at the airport when suspected symptoms develop. If symptoms develop within two weeks of their return, please seek immediate medical attention and inform the physician of their travel history. 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).