Travel Health Service Year 2017

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	556	World Health Organization, 20 June 2017
Brazil	144,326	World Health Organization, 23 June 2017
Cambodia	535	World Health Organization, 20 June 2017
India	11,402	Ministry of Health & Family Welfare, India, 31 May 2017
Guangdong	42	Health and Family Planning Commission of Guangdong Province, 14 June 2017
Japan	81^#	National Institute of Infectious Diseases, Japan, 27 June 2017
Lao PDR	2,138	World Health Organization, 20 June 2017
Malaysia	43,807	World Health Organization, 20 June 2017
Mexico	3,782	World Health Organization, 23 June 2017
Philippines	33,760	World Health Organization, 20 June 2017
Singapore	1,411	Singapore National Environment Agency, 29 June 2017
Sri Lanka	69,380	Ministry of Health, Sri Lanka, 23 June 2017
Taiwan	0”	CDC, ROC (Taiwan), 29 June 2017
Thailand	16,790	Ministry of Public Health, Thailand, 27 June 2017
Vietnam	29,701	World Health Organization, 20 June 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.

Romania: Meningococcal meningitis

A fatal case of meningococcal meningitis was reported in Brasov, Romania.

(Source: ProMED-mail 3 July 2017)

Central & South America: Chikungunya fever [Update]

Recent update reported 488 more chikungunya cases in the Americas. The majority of new cases were from Bolivia. Other countries reported small numbers of new cases including Colombia, Guatemala, El Salvador, Costa Rica, and Mexico.

(Source: Center for Infectious Disease Research and Policy 3 July 2017)

Romania: Measles [Update]

From late 2016, more than 7,200 cases of measles have been reported in Romania. 30 people died.

(Source: ProMED-mail 2 July 2017)

Yemen: Cholera [Update]

Almost 246,000 suspected cholera cases were reported in Yemen. 1,500 people died.

(Source: ProMED-mail 1 July 2017)

Thailand: Hand, Foot and Mouth Disease [Update]

Over 24 000 people, mostly children up to 4-years-old, were infected with hand, foot and mouth disease during the 1st 6 months of this year in Thailand.

(Source: ProMED-mail 1 July 2017)

Hong Kong: Japanese Encephalitis

The Centre for Health Protection of the Department of Health is investigating a local case of Japanese encephalitis and again urged the public to avoid going to rural areas from dusk till dawn when the vector which breeds in large water bodies such as rice paddies is most active.

Initial enquiries revealed that the 38-year-old patient had no travel history in the incubation period. He lives in Tin Shui (I) Estate, Tin Shui Wai. His home contacts have remained asymptomatic and been put under medical surveillance.

(Source: Centre for Health Protection of Department of Health 30 June 2017)

Mainland: Avian influenza, human [Update]

The Centre for Health Protection of the Department of Health is monitoring a notification from the National Health and Family Planning Commission that six additional human cases of avian influenza A(H7N9) were recorded from June 23 to 29, and strongly urged the public to maintain strict personal, food and environmental hygiene both locally and during travel.

The three male and three female patients, aged from 4 to 72, had onset from June 11 to 23. Four of them are from Yunnan and one each from Guizhou and Shanxi. Among them, five were known to have exposure to poultry or poultry markets.

(Source: Centre for Health Protection of Department of Health 30 June 2017)

Saudi Arabia: Middle East Respiratory Syndrome [Update]

The Centre for Health Protection (CHP) of the Department of Health is closely monitoring seven additional cases of Middle East Respiratory Syndrome (MERS), including two deaths, reported to the World Health Organization by the Kingdom of Saudi Arabia, and again urged the public to pay special attention to safety during travel, taking due consideration of the health risks in the places they visit.

"Travellers to the Middle East, particularly in the summer vacation, should avoid going to farms, barns or markets with camels, avoid contact with sick persons and animals, especially camels, birds or poultry, and avoid unnecessary visits to healthcare facilities. We strongly advise travel agents organising tours to the Middle East to abstain from arranging camel rides and activities involving direct contact with camels, which are known risk factors for acquiring MERS Coronavirus," a spokesman for the CHP said.

Among the six male and one female patients aged from 22 to 85, four had underlying illnesses. Three (including one healthcare worker) had contact with confirmed MERS cases and they were involved in two nosocomial clusters. In addition, four previously confirmed patients died.

(Source: Centre for Health Protection of Department of Health 29 June 2017)

India: Malaria

A total of 113 cases of malaria have been recorded since January this year in Delhi, India.

(Source: ProMED-mail 29 June 2017)

Nigeria: Hepatitis E

As of 17 June 2017, a total of 53 suspected hepatitis E cases have been reported in the north-east Borno State of Nigeria. At least 3 pregnant women were among these cases.

(Source: ProMED-mail 28 June 2017)

Panama: Hantavirus infection

Two cases of Hantavirus pulmonary syndrome were reported in Los Santos province in Panama. The patients were mother and son.

(Source: ProMED-mail 28 June 2017)

Yemen: Cholera [Update]

Almost 219,000 suspected cholera cases were reported in Yemen. More than 1,400 people died.

(Source: ProMED-mail 27 June 2017)

Nepal: Scrub Typhus

A case of scrub typhus has been reported in Chitwan district, Nepal.

(Source: ProMED-mail 27June 2017)