Travel Health Service Year 2019

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 01/01/2019 *

	Cumulative reported no. of cases since 01/01/2019	Source of information and date of report
Australia	569	World Health Organization, 6 June 2019
Brazil	586,569	World Health Organization, 13 June 2019
Cambodia	1,330	World Health Organization, 28 February 2019
Guangdong, China	240	Health Commission of Guangdong Province, 13 June 2019
India	5,504^{^}	Ministry of Health & Family Welfare, India, 26 May 2019
Japan	132^{^}	National Institute of Infectious Diseases, Japan, 11 June 2019
Lao PDR	4,216	World Health Organization, 6 June 2019
Malaysia	52,941	World Health Organization, 6 June 2019
Mexico	12,900	World Health Organization, 13 June 2019
The Philippines	77,040	World Health Organization, 6 June 2019
Singapore	5,037^@	Singapore National Environment Agency, 13 June 2019
Sri Lanka	20,746	Ministry of Health, Sri Lanka, 13 June 2019
Taiwan, China	20”	CDC, ROC (Taiwan), 13 June 2019
Thailand	28,785	Ministry of Public Health, Thailand, 11 June 2019
Vietnam	59,959	World Health Organization, 6 June 2019

* Dengue reporting systems vary by country/area.
@Cumulative cases since 30 December 2018.
^ Cumulative cases since 31 December 2018.
” 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 the Congo: Ebola Virus Disease [Update]

The Ebola outbreak in Democratic Republic of the Congo continues. The total number of cases has reached 2,168. The total number of deaths is 1,440.

(Source: Center for Infectious Disease Research and Policy 17 June 2019)

Uganda: Ebola Virus Disease [Update]

Uganda has recorded the three cases of Ebola linked to the ongoing outbreak in the Democratic Republic of the Congo. All three patients have died.

(Source: Outbreak News Today 17 June 2019)

Saudi Arabia: Middle East Respiratory Syndrome [Update]

The Saudi Arabian Ministry of Health (MOH) has been continually reporting cases of Middle East Respiratory Syndrome. The latest total number of cases recorded stands at 151 this year.

(Source: Center for Infectious Disease Research and Policy 17 June 2019)

Democratic Republic of the Congo: Measles [Update]

Measles activity in Democratic Republic of the Congo is in increasing trend. As of 9 June, 106,870 cases have been reported this year, including 1,815 deaths.

(Source: Outbreak News Today 17 June 2019)

Reunion Island: Dengue Fever [Update]

The dengue fever outbreak on Reunion Island continues in 2019. Over 14,000 cases have been reported since the beginning of the year.

(Source: Outbreak News Today 15 June 2019)

Democratic Republic of the Congo: Ebola Virus Disease [Update]

The Ebola outbreak in Democratic Republic of the Congo continues. The total number of cases has reached 2,120. The total number of deaths is 1,420.

(Source: Center for Infectious Disease Research and Policy 14 June 2019)

Southeast Asia: Dengue Fever [Update]

The Centre for Health Protection (CHP) of the Department of Health reported the latest number of cases of dengue fever (DF), and again urged the public to maintain strict environmental hygiene, mosquito control and personal protective measures both locally and during travel.

From June 6 to 13, the CHP confirmed four imported DF cases. The patients had been to Cambodia (one case), Fiji (one case), Indonesia (one case) and Thailand (one case) during the incubation period.

As of June 13, 58 cases had been confirmed this year, all of which were imported. The cases were mainly imported from Thailand (12), Indonesia (11) and Malaysia (11).

(Source: Centre for Health Protection of Department of Health 14 June 2019)

Democratic Republic of the Congo: Ebola Virus Disease [Update]

The Ebola outbreak in Democratic Republic of the Congo continues. The total number of cases has reached 2,108. The total number of deaths is 1,411.

(Source: Center for Infectious Disease Research and Policy 13 June 2019)

Uganda: Ebola Virus Disease [Update]

Uganda has recorded the three cases of Ebola linked to the ongoing outbreak in the Democratic Republic of the Congo, including 2 deaths.

(Source: Outbreak News Today 13 June 2019)

Malaysia: Rabies [Update]

The Malaysian Ministry of Health announced that the latest rabies epidemic in Sarawak since July 2017 has reached 19 confirmed cases, including 18 deaths. The latest fatal case was recorded on 12 June this year.

(Source: Outbreak News Today 13 June 2019)

Uganda: Ebola Virus Disease [Update]

Uganda has recorded the three cases of Ebola linked to the ongoing outbreak in the Democratic Republic of the Congo. The two additional patients were family members of the 5-year-old boy who was diagnosed of the disease earlier. The boy died yesterday, marking the first fatal case in Uganda.

(Source: Center for Infectious Disease Research and Policy 12 June 2019)

Democratic Republic of the Congo: Ebola Virus Disease [Update]

The Ebola outbreak in Democratic Republic of the Congo continues. The total number of cases has reached 2,071. The total number of deaths is 1,396.

(Source: Center for Infectious Disease Research and Policy 12 June 2019)

Comoros: Measles

Comoros, an island nation in eastern Africa has reported measles outbreak since April this year. As of 1 June, 66 cases have been reported.

(Source: Outbreak News Today 12 June 2019)

Uganda: Ebola Virus Disease

Uganda has recorded the first case of Ebola linked to the ongoing outbreak in the Democratic Republic of the Congo. The patient was a 5-year-old boy who reached the DRC-Uganda border with his family on 10 June, and was referred to medical care by border medical staff for being a suspected case. His grandfather died from the disease recently.

(Source: Center for Infectious Disease Research and Policy 11 June 2019)

State of New York, USA: Measles [Update]

USA New York State continues to report measles cases. Brooklyn and Queens have reached 588 cases in total since September 2018. Rockland County has reached 267 cases since September 2018.

(Source: Outbreak News Today 11 June 2019)