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	492	World Health Organization, 30 August 2018
Brazil	239,389	World Health Organization, 30 August 2018
Cambodia	5,436	World Health Organization, 30 August 2018
Guangdong	378	Health and Family Planning Commission of Guangdong Province, 17 September 2018
India	14,233	Ministry of Health & Family Welfare, India, 22 July 2018
Japan	119	National Institute of Infectious Diseases, Japan, 19 September 2018
Lao PDR	3,586	World Health Organization, 30 August 2018
Macau	1”	Health Bureau of Macau, 22 August 2018
Malaysia	46,544	World Health Organization, 30 August 2018
Mexico	29,665	World Health Organization, 20 September 2018
Philippines	20,108	World Health Organization, 30 August 2018
Singapore	2,045^@	Singapore National Environment Agency, 20 September 2018
Sri Lanka	38,521	Ministry of Health, Sri Lanka, 20 September 2018
Taiwan	117”	CDC, ROC (Taiwan), 16 September 2018
Thailand	57,129	Ministry of Public Health, Thailand, 19 September 2018
Vietnam	39,692	World Health Organization, 30 August 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.

Democratic Republic of Congo: Ebola Virus Disease [Update]

According to the Democratic Republic of the Congo (DRC) Ministry of Health’s (MoH) update on the Ebola Virus Disease (EVD), the number of confirmed outbreak cases has now reached 119. In addition, there are another 31 probable cases reported. The total number of deaths is 100. The second case has been recorded in Tchomia, a small town on the shores of Lake Albert near the Ugandan border.

(Source: Center for Infectious Disease Research and Policy 25 September 2018)

Madagascar: Plague [Update]

The Madagascar Ministry of Health reported 16 suspected cases of human plague with 4 deaths since August this year. Of the 5 confirmed cases, 2 were classified as bubonic plague and 3 as pulmonary plague.

(Source: Pro-MED Mail 24 September 2018)

Nigeria: Cholera

Borno State of Nigeria recorded 125 additional cases of suspected cholera last Friday, bringing the total number of cases in the recent outbreak to 2,283, including 40 deaths.

(Source: Outbreak News Today 23 September 2018)

Italy: Legionnaires’ disease

400 cases of pneumonia had been reported recently in the city of Brescia in Lombardy region, in which 42 were tested positive for Legionella.

(Source: Outbreak News Today 23 September 2018)

Israel: Leptospirosis [Update]

As of mid-September 2018, 620 cases of leptospirosis were reported in Israel, in which 146 people were hospitalized. The outbreak was related to swimming in natural springs in northern Israel.

(Source: Pro-MED Mail 23 September 2018)

Chile: Cholera

Since June 2018, 31 cases of cholera have been reported by the Chilean Ministry of Health.

(Source: Pro-MED Mail 21 September 2018)

Zimbabwe: Cholera

Since September 2018, 3,621 cumulative suspected cases of cholera have been reported in Zimbabwe capital Harare, including 71 confirmed cases and 32 deaths.

(Source: Pro-MED Mail 21 September 2018)

Madagascar: Plague [Update]

The Madagascar Ministry of Health reported 13 suspected cases of human plague, 3 of which were confirmed with 2 deaths since August this year.

(Source: Pro-MED Mail 21 September 2018)

Democratic Republic of Congo: Ebola Virus Disease [Update]

According to the Democratic Republic of the Congo (DRC) Ministry of Health’s (MoH) update on the Ebola Virus Disease (EVD), the number of confirmed outbreak cases has now reached 112. In addition, there are another 31 probable cases reported. The total number of deaths is 97. The latest case was found on the shores of Lake Albert, near the Ugandan border.

(Source: Center for Infectious Disease Research and Policy 21 September 2018)

Afghanistan: Poliomyelitis [Update]

A new case of wild poliovirus type 1 was reported in Afghanistan, bringing the total number of cases to 14 this year.

(Source: Pro-MED Mail 20 September 2018)

Saudi Arabia: Cholera

Saudi Arabia confirmed this week 1 case of cholera and another 3 suspected cases in an area bordering Yemen, where an epidemic has killed more than 2,000 people alerting Saudi Arabian health officials.

(Source: Pro-MED Mail 20 September 2018)

USA: cyclosporiasis [Update]

The US Centers for Disease Control and Prevention (CDC) recorded 2,173 lab-confirmed domestically acquired Cyclospora cases in 33 states were reported from May through August this year, markedly higher than the past 2 years, and that some of the illnesses reflect several restaurant clusters linked to contaminated basil and cilantro.

(Source: Center for Infectious Disease Research and Policy 19 September 2018)

Canada: West Nile Virus infection

One person was reportedly dead from West Nile Virus infection in Ontario, Canada.

(Source: ProMED-mail 19 September 2018)

Madagascar: Plague

The Madagascar Ministry of Health reported 9 suspected cases of human plague, including 2 deaths since August this year.

(Source: Outbreak News Today 18 September 2018)

Romania: West Nile virus [Update]

Romanian health officials reported 4 more deaths from West Nile virus infection countrywide last week, bringing the total number of death cases to 21 this year.

(Source: ProMED-mail 18 September 2018)