On July 31, 2016, the Taiwan Centers for Disease Control (Taiwan CDC) subsequently received reports of 2 suspected measles cases in a 42-year-old male who resides in New Taipei City and a 25-year-old female who resides in Taipei City from the local health authorities. Infection with measles was laboratory confirmed in both cases. Both cases visited the waiting area for the domestic flight at Songshan Airport during 1 to 1:20 pm on July 15. Moreover, the Taiwan CDC’s laboratory found the gene sequences of the specimens collected from the two cases are the same. Hence, they are determined to be clustered cases.

On July 15, 2016, the 42-year-old case took a flight to Kinmen from Songshan Airport. On July 16, he returned to Taiwan. During July 24 and 31, he visited a clinic several times after developing symptoms such as fever, cough and rash.　The 25-year-old case is an airline ground crew. On July 15, she worked at the waiting area for the domestic flight at Songshan Airport. During July 30 and 31, she visited a clinic and a hospital several times after subsequently developed symptoms such as fever and rash. On August 1, infection with measles was confirmed in both cases after the hospitals reported them to the health authorities as suspected cases. On July 31, a coworker of the 25-year-old case, hereinafter referred to as the suspected case, also developed rash. The suspected case also worked at the same place at the same time on July 15 as the 25-year-old case. Taiwan CDC has arranged for a medical officer to assist in collecting specimens from the suspected case for laboratory testing. Currently, the suspected case is resting at home. To prevent further transmission of the disease, the health authority has implemented a number of prevention measures and identified 328 contacts, including the suspected case and the contacts, to monitor and follow up until August 21. Besides the suspected case, 16 of the contacts have been followed up and found to have not developed suspected symptoms, and 311 of them are being followed up.　

In addition, during the infectious period (July 26 and August 3), the 25-year-old case used the public transport system. Specifically, she took the MRT Wenhu Line to work from Songshan Airport Station to Taipei Nangang Exhibition Center Station at 5:20am on July 26, at 8:30 am on July 27, and at 1pm on July 29 and August 1. She took the same line to return home from Taipei Nangang Exhibition Center Station to Songshan Airport Station at 1:20pm on July 26, at 7pm on July 27, at 8pm on July 29, and at 4pm on August 1. Further, on July 26, 27 and 29 and August 1, she also took bus 620 from home to Nangang Exhibition Center Station and to return home from the same MRT station. On her day off on July 28, she took bus 212 at 2pm from home to Xinyi District and took bus 270 at 7pm to return home from Xinyi District. As a result, people who have visited the aforementioned stations and took the same buses during the aforementioned periods of time are potential contacts and are thus urged to conduct self-health management for 18 days after the last possible contact with the case. If suspected symptoms develop, please put on a mask immediately, seek prompt medical attention and voluntarily notify the physician of relevant exposure history.

Thus far this year, a total of 8 measles cases, including 4 indigenous cases (2 clustered cases at the airport and 2 cases with unknown source of infection) and 4 imported cases from China, Hong Kong, Vietnam and India, have been confirmed. Last year, a total of 29 measles cases, including 23 indigenous cases and 6 imported cases from China, were confirmed in Taiwan.　

Taiwan CDC reminds that vaccination remains the best way to prevent measles. In Taiwan, the existing routine childhood vaccination schedule recommends a dose of MMR vaccine to children 12 months of age and another dose to first graders in elementary schools. Unvaccinated infants and children, those who do not receive vaccine in a timely manner and those who have never been infected with measles are high-risk groups. Parents are urged to ensure timely vaccination of children under one year old and those who have not completed the MMR vaccine series and avoid bringing unvaccinated children to the affected areas in order to prevent infection. People who are unsure of their infection and vaccination status are advised to seek their healthcare provider to determine their need for self-paid MMR vaccination. If symptoms pertaining to measels infection such as fever, fatigue, nasopharyngitis and obviously swollen lymph nodes behind the ears, and generalized irregular papules, joint pain or arthritis develop after returning to Taiwan from affected areas, please put on a mask, seek immediate medical attention, and voluntarily inform the physician of relevant travel and exposure 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).