Travel Health Service Year 2017

Current Travel Health News

Travel Health News

Current Travel Health News

Take precautions against dengue fever when travelling abroad

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 01/01/2017 *

 

Cumulative reported no.
of cases since 01/01/2017

Source of information and date of report

Australia

939

World Health Organization, 5 December 2017

Brazil

219,040

World Health Organization, 27 October 2017

Cambodia

3,056

World Health Organization, 5 December 2017

India

155,855

Ministry of Health & Family Welfare, India, 17 December 2017

Guangdong

1,704

Health and Family Planning Commission of Guangdong Province, 15 December 2017

Japan

239#

National Institute of Infectious Diseases, Japan, 19 December 2017

Lao PDR

10,820

World Health Organization, 5 December 2017

Macau

6"

Health Bureau of Macau, 27 October 2017

Malaysia

79,023

World Health Organization, 5 December 2017

Mexico

58,697

World Health Organization, 27 October 2017

Philippines

97,287

World Health Organization, 5 December 2017

Singapore

2,684

Singapore National Environment Agency, 21 December 2017

Sri Lanka

180,939

Ministry of Health, Sri Lanka, 21 December 2017

Taiwan

10”

CDC, ROC (Taiwan), 21 December 2017

Thailand

50,914

Ministry of Public Health, Thailand, 20 December 2017

Vietnam

173,169

World Health Organization, 5 December 2017

Remarks:
* Dengue reporting systems vary by country.
“ Locally-acquired
# Cumulative cases since 2 January 2017.

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.


Namibia: Hepatitis E

The health ministry of Namibia announced the death of one person from hepatitis E virus while 26 others tested positive for the virus in Windhoek.

(Source: ProMED-mail 24 December 2017)

 

Zambia: Cholera [Update]

Lusaka, the capital of Zambia, has recorded 50 new cholera cases, bringing the total cases since the outbreak in October 2017 to 912.

(Source: ProMED-mail 24 December 2017)

 

United Kingdom: Measles

As of 19 December, United Kingdom reported 34 confirmed cases of measles in West Yorkshire, 28 confirmed cases in Cheshire and Liverpool, 22 confirmed cases in West Midlands, 11 confirmed cases in Surrey and 4 confirmed cases in Greater Manchester. Vaccination with the combined measles-mumps-rubella (MMR) vaccine is recommended for travellers to England.

(Source: Public Health England 21 December 2017)

 

Yemen: Cholera [Update]

The World Health Organization announced that as of 17 December 2017, there were 994,751 suspected cholera cases in Yemen, including 2,226 associated deaths.

(Source: Center for Infectious Disease Research and Policy 21 December 2017)

 

Saudi Arabia: Avian Influenza, poultry

Saudi Arabia announced the detection of Highly Pathogenic H5N8 virus among birds at a market in Riyadh on 20 December 2017.

(Source: ProMED-mail 21 December 2017)

 

Madagascar: Plague [Update]

Since August 2017, Madagascar has reported 2,575 cases of plague, including 221 deaths. There were 1,985 cases classified as serious pneumonic plague.

(Source: Center for Infectious Disease Research and Policy 19 December 2017)

 

Poland: Hepatitis A

Poland has a huge increase in cases of Hepatitis A this year compared to recent previous years. There were 1,685 cases of Hepatitis A between January and the end of September. In Warsaw, 551 hepatitis A cases have been reported as of November 2017.

(Source: Outbreak News Today 20 December 2017)

 

Saudi Arabia: Middle East Respiratory Syndrome

Between 31 October and 8 December 2017, Saudi Arabia reported 18 additional cases of Middle East respiratory syndrome coronavirus (MERS-CoV) infection, including five deaths. Five of these 18 cases had contact history with dromedaries and one was a close contact of a known case.

(Source: The World Health Organization 19 December 2017)

 

Nigeria: Monkeypox

The Nigeria Centre for Disease Control reported 61 lab-confirmed monkeypox cases and 172 suspected cases since the outbreak began earlier this fall. So far, one death attributed to monkeypox was recorded.

(Source: Center for Infectious Disease Research and Policy 19 December 2017)

 

USA: Salmonella

The Centers for Disease Control and Prevention of USA reported a case of Salmonella infection on 19 December 2017, which has been linked to contaminated rattlesnake pills.

(Source: Center for Infectious Disease Research and Policy 19 December 2017)