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Editor, Senior Moderator
Source: http://focustaiwan.tw/ShowNews/WebNews_Detail.aspx?Type=aALL&ID=201005140022
Taiwan records year's first indigenous measles case
2010/05/14 17:03:57
Taipei, May 14 (CNA) The Centers for Disease Control (CDC) reported Friday the country's first indigenous measles case for this year, a 31-year-old Taipei County resident who has never been vaccinated against the virus.
There have been five imported measles cases since the start of this year.
The most recent patient first came down with a fever and rash April 27. He made four visits to two clinics before finally being diagnosed at a medical center April 30, according to CDC Deputy Director-General Lin Ting.
The man had not been overseas recently, and it was still unclear where he contracted the virus, Lin said.
Sixty-seven people, including the patient's family and healthcare workers, have had contact with him, none of whom have displayed signs of infection, he added.
He recalled that six cases of cluster infection were recorded in Taiwan in 2009, five of which occurred in a hospital. In these cases, non-vaccinated infants got infected when they were in China or Vietnam with their families, and the virus was later transmitted to healthcare workers and other patients when they were hospitalized in Taiwan.
Lin noted that the measles virus is highly contagious and is prevalent in neighboring countries including Japan, China, Vietnam and the Philippines, where the measles immunization rates are lower than Taiwan's.
In Taiwan, children are normally given a first dose of the measles-mumps-rubella vaccine at 1 year and a booster shot during their first year of elementary school.
If parents are planning to bring infants aged 6-12 months to measles prevalent areas, they should have the children vaccinated prior to departure, CDC officials said. (By Chen Ching-fang and Y.F. Low) ENDITEM/J
Taiwan records year's first indigenous measles case
2010/05/14 17:03:57
Taipei, May 14 (CNA) The Centers for Disease Control (CDC) reported Friday the country's first indigenous measles case for this year, a 31-year-old Taipei County resident who has never been vaccinated against the virus.
There have been five imported measles cases since the start of this year.
The most recent patient first came down with a fever and rash April 27. He made four visits to two clinics before finally being diagnosed at a medical center April 30, according to CDC Deputy Director-General Lin Ting.
The man had not been overseas recently, and it was still unclear where he contracted the virus, Lin said.
Sixty-seven people, including the patient's family and healthcare workers, have had contact with him, none of whom have displayed signs of infection, he added.
He recalled that six cases of cluster infection were recorded in Taiwan in 2009, five of which occurred in a hospital. In these cases, non-vaccinated infants got infected when they were in China or Vietnam with their families, and the virus was later transmitted to healthcare workers and other patients when they were hospitalized in Taiwan.
Lin noted that the measles virus is highly contagious and is prevalent in neighboring countries including Japan, China, Vietnam and the Philippines, where the measles immunization rates are lower than Taiwan's.
In Taiwan, children are normally given a first dose of the measles-mumps-rubella vaccine at 1 year and a booster shot during their first year of elementary school.
If parents are planning to bring infants aged 6-12 months to measles prevalent areas, they should have the children vaccinated prior to departure, CDC officials said. (By Chen Ching-fang and Y.F. Low) ENDITEM/J