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 between 01/01/2018 and 31/12/2018 *

	Cumulative reported no. of cases since 01/01/2018	Source of information and date of report
Brazil	247,393	World Health Organization, 24 January 2019
Guangdong, China	3,316	Health and Family Planning Commission of Guangdong Province, 15 January 2019
India	89,974	Ministry of Health & Family Welfare, India, 25 November 2018
Macao, China	5”	Health Bureau of Macau, 6 November 2018
Philippines	211,571	World Health Organization, 17 January 2019
Vietnam	113,850	World Health Organization, 17 January 2019

Remarks:
* Dengue reporting systems vary by country/area.
” Locally-acquired

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	12	World Health Organization, 17 January 2019
Cambodia	142	World Health Organization, 17 January 2019
Japan	15^{^}	National Institute of Infectious Diseases, Japan, 22 January 2019
Lao PDR	96	World Health Organization, 17 January 2019
Malaysia	2,587	World Health Organization, 17 January 2019
Mexico	1,599	World Health Organization, 24 January 2019
Singapore	822^@	Singapore National Environment Agency, 24 January 2019
Sri Lanka	3,708	Ministry of Health, Sri Lanka, 24 January 2019
Taiwan, China	0”	CDC, ROC (Taiwan), 24 January 2019
Thailand	1,679	Ministry of Public Health, Thailand, 23 January 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.

State of Washington, USA: Measles [Update]

Since the identification of an outbreak in January 2019, USA Washington State recorded 35 confirmed cases of measles. In view of the outbreak, Washington State Government declared state of emergency on 25 January 2019.

(Source: Outbreak News Today 28 January 2019)

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

The Ebola outbreak in Democratic Republic of the Congo continues. The number of cases has reached 736 and the total number of deaths is 459.

(Source: Center for Infectious Disease Research and Policy 28 January 2019)

State of Washington, USA: Measles

Since the identification of an outbreak in January 2019, USA Washington State recorded 30 confirmed cases of measles. In view of the outbreak, Washington State Government declared state of emergency on 25 January 2019.

(Source: Outbreak News Today 26 January 2019)

Madagascar: Measles [Update]

Since the onset of the outbreak on 4 October 2018 to 18 January 2019, a total of 28,747 measles cases have been reported in Madagascar, of which 504 were confirmed and 28,243 epidemiologically linked. About 55% of cases are either unvaccinated or of unknown vaccination status.

(Source: World Health Organization 25 January 2019)

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

The Ebola outbreak in Democratic Republic of the Congo continues. The number of cases has reached 721 and the total number of deaths is 446.

(Source: Center for Infectious Disease Research and Policy 25 January 2019)

Southeast Asia: Dengue Fever [Update]

From January 18 to 24, the CHP recorded one imported dengue fever (DF) case. The patient had been to Indonesia during the incubation period.

As of 24 January, 12 cases had been confirmed this year, all of which were imported cases. The cases were mainly imported from Indonesia (two), Malaysia (two), Maldives (two), the Philippines (two) and Thailand (two).

DF remains endemic in some areas of Asia and beyond. The latest figures for 2019 revealed that 1 679 cases had been recorded in Thailand, 822 cases in Singapore (since December 30, 2018) and 15 in Japan. In the Americas, the latest figures indicated that 1 599 cases were filed in Mexico in 2019.

(Source: Centre for Health Protection of Department of Health 25 January 2019)

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

The Ebola outbreak in Democratic Republic of the Congo continues. The number of cases has reached 715 and the total number of deaths is 443.

(Source: Center for Infectious Disease Research and Policy 24 January 2019)

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

The Ebola outbreak in Democratic Republic of the Congo continues. The number of cases has reached 713 and the total number of deaths is 439.

(Source: Center for Infectious Disease Research and Policy 23 January 2019)

Ukraine: Measles [Update]

Ukraine continues to report measles at high levels. Since the beginning of 2019, 8,498 cases have been reported across the country, including 5 deaths.

(Source: Outbreak News Today 23 January 2019)

Kazakhstan: Measles

More than 740 cases of measles have been reported since early January 2019 throughout the country. The US Centers for Disease Control and Prevention issued a travel notice for the country of Kazakhstan.

(Source: United States Centers for Disease Control and Prevention 22 January 2019)

South Korea: Measles

Since mid-December 2018, 30 cases of measles have been reported in South Korea, involving five provinces.

(Source: Outbreak News Today 22 January 2019)

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

The Ebola outbreak in Democratic Republic of the Congo continues. The number of cases has reached 699 and the total number of deaths is 433.

(Source: Center for Infectious Disease Research and Policy 22 January 2019)