Current Travel Health News

Dengue fever is now endemic in more than 100 countries in Africa, the Americas, the Eastern Mediterranean, Southeast Asia and the Western Pacific. This includes various popular tourist destinations for Hong Kong people including the Philippines, Thailand, Indonesia, Malaysia and Singapore.

Travellers planning to travel in these areas should take precautions against the disease.

Cumulative reported number of dengue cases since 01/01/2016 *

	Cumulative reported no. of cases since 01/01/2016	Source of information and date of report
Australia	1,106	World Health Organization, 14 June 2016
Brazil	1,244,583	World Health Organization, 17 June 2016
Cambodia	1,771	World Health Organization, 14 June 2016
Guangdong	48	Health and Family Planning Commission of Guangdong Province, 15 June 2016
India	5,605	Ministry of Health & Family Welfare, India, 30 May 2016
Japan	145#	National Institute of Infectious Diseases, Japan, 21 June 2016
Lao PDR	840	World Health Organization, 14 June 2016
Mexico	29,467	World Health Organization, 17 June 2016
Philippines	33,748	World Health Organization, 14 June 2016
Singapore	8,841^	Singapore National Environment Agency, 23 June 2016
Sri Lanka	19,566	Ministry of Health, Sri Lanka, 23 June 2016
Taiwan	372	CDC, ROC (Taiwan), 23 June 2016
Thailand	19,620	Ministry of Public Health, Thailand, 21 June 2016
Vietnam	25,441	World Health Organization, 14 June 2016

Remark:
* Dengue reporting systems vary by country.
^ Cumulative cases since 3 January 2016
# Cumulative cases since 4 January 2016.

Travellers should stay vigilant against dengue fever and adopt the following personal preventive measures against mosquito bite:

*	Always wear loose, light-coloured long-sleeved tops and trousers;
*	Stay in air-conditioned residence or places with mosquito screens;
*	If mosquito screen or air-conditioning is absent, aerosol insecticide and bed nets are advised;
*	Use insect repellents containing DEET on exposed skin and clothing;
*	Use insect repellents containing DEET apart from applying sunscreen while staying in beaches;
*	Re-apply insect repellents according to instructions during the trip;
*	Carry a portable bed nets and apply permethrin on it as well as to clothes if travelling to rural areas where dengue fever is prevalent.

Travellers returning from areas where dengue fever is prevalent should seek medical advice as soon as possible if they feel unwell and provide travel details to their doctors.

Italy: Tick-borne encephalitis

Seven cases of tick-borne encephalitis were reported in Italy.

[Editor's note: Tick-borne Encephalitis is a viral infection. It is transmitted by bite of infective ticks or by consumption of infected milk. The incubation period is between 7 – 14 days. Patients may present with fever, malaise, headache, muscle pain, nausea, vomiting, neck stiffness, confusion, and paralysis. In general, 1 to 2 percent of the cases died of the disease. Travellers should adopt measures similar to anti-mosquito measures to avoid tick bite and avoid consumption of unpasteurised milk. Vaccine is available in some endemic area.]

(Source: ProMED-mail 27 June 2016)

 

India: Scrub typhus

So far this year, 5 fatal cases of scrub typhus have been reported in India.

(Source: ProMED-mail 25 June 2016)