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 01/01/2018 *

	Cumulative reported no. of cases since 01/01/2018	Source of information and date of report
Australia	343	World Health Organization, 21 June 2018
Brazil	126,024	World Health Organization, 5 July 2018
Cambodia	1,488	World Health Organization, 21 June 2018
Guangdong	38	Health and Family Planning Commission of Guangdong Province, 14 June 2018
India	9,143	Ministry of Health & Family Welfare, India, 24 June 2018
Japan	61	National Institute of Infectious Diseases, Japan, 3 July 2018
Lao PDR	849	World Health Organization, 21 June 2018
Macau	1”	Health Bureau of Macau, 19 June 2018
Malaysia	27,103	World Health Organization, 21 June 2018
Mexico	12,921	World Health Organization, 5 July 2018
Philippines	20,108	World Health Organization, 21 June 2018
Singapore	1,414^@	Singapore National Environment Agency, 5 July 2018
Sri Lanka	25,827	Ministry of Health, Sri Lanka, 5 July 2018
Taiwan	1”	CDC, ROC (Taiwan), 5 July 2018
Thailand	25,408	Ministry of Public Health, Thailand, 3 July 2018
Vietnam	22,842	World Health Organization, 21 June 2018

* Dengue reporting systems vary by country/area.
@ Cumulative cases since 31 December 2017.
“ Locally-acquired

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.

Uganda: Rift Valley Fever

Uganda has reported 3 confirmed cases of Rift Valley Fever in the western Uganda.

(Source: Outbreak News Today 9 July 2018)

Namibia: Hepatitis E [Update]

In the Hepatitis E outbreak of Namibia since December 2017, there were 1,569 cases reported, including 15 deaths. The outbreak has spread from the capital to other regions of the country.

(Source: Outbreak News Today 9 July 2018)

Singapore: Hand, Foot and Mouth Disease

For the first half of the year, 21,675 cases of hand, foot and mouth disease have been reported in Singapore. There is an increase of 23 percent compared to the same period last year.

(Source: Outbreak News Today 7 July 2018)

Slovakia: Measles

Slovakia health officials reported an outbreak of measles began at the end of May in eastern Slovakia. As of July 2, 101 cases of measles have been reported.

(Source: Outbreak News Today 6 July 2018)

Afghanistan: Poliomyelitis [Update]

Afghanistan reported 1 new case of wild poliovirus type 1 (WPV1) last week, which updated the total number of recorded WPV1 cases in 2018 to 9.

(Source: Center for Infectious Disease Research and Policy 6 July 2018)

Democratic Republic of Congo: Ebola Virus Disease [Update]

In the update report of Ebola outbreak of the Democratic Republic of Congo, the total number of Ebola cases is 53. There are 38 confirmed cases, 15 probable cases, 2 suspected cases and 28 deaths.

(Source: Center for Infectious Disease Research and Policy 5 July 2018)

Ireland: Escherichia Coli

Ireland health officials reported an increase in the number of Escherichia coli infections in recent weeks. In the past 10 days, 96 cases of Verocytotoxigenic Escherichia coli infections have been reported.

(Source: Outbreak News Today 5 July 2018)

Philippines: Leptospirosis

Philippines health officials declared a leptospirosis outbreak in the Metro Manila area. From January 1 to July 3, 2018, a total of 368 leptospirosis cases has been reported from Metro Manila, including 52 deaths.

(Source: Outbreak News Today 5 July 2018)

Kenya: Rift Valley Fever [Update]

Kenya has reported 36 more cases of Rift Valley Fever last week. So far, a total of 90 cases have been reported (18 confirmed cases).

(Source: Center for Infectious Disease Research and Policy 3 July 2018)

Namibia: Influenza

The Namibian Ministry of Health reported an outbreak of swine flu, also known as the H1N1, in Windhoek area. So far, seven people have been hospitalised for the H1N1 infection and one people died.

(Source: Outbreak News Today 3 July 2018)