A medical support team tasked with controlling the spread of dengue fever in Taiwan was set up by the Ministry of Health and Welfare Sept. 1, underscoring the government’s commitment to safeguarding public health.
Comprising seven specialists in family medicine, infectious diseases and internal medicine, as well as pulmonary and critical care, the team will assist in early diagnosis and treatment.
According to the MOHW Centers for Disease Control, the number of confirmed dengue cases is on the rise, especially in the last week of August. “The government is keeping a close eye on the situation and coordinating public and private medical resources to ensure the outbreak is kept in check,” a CDC official said.
The support team is part of disease control measures announced by the Cabinet earlier this week involving the Environmental Protection Administration and Ministry of National Defense.
Other initiatives include enhancing chemical control in epidemic prone areas, especially Tainan City; offering more rapid screening kits to increase disease detection efficiency; and promoting public awareness on disease prevention.
In particular, the Ministry of Education has instructed schools nationwide to implement dengue prevention measures. These encompass disposing of used bottles, containers and tires, as well as cleaning water storage tanks regularly to eliminate mosquito breeding places.
The latest CDC statistics show there have been 3,686 locally contracted cases since May, with 88 percent and 11 percent of these reported in the southern cities of Tainan and Kaohsiung, respectively. Another 175 confirmed cases were contracted outside the country, mostly in Southeast Asian nations.
Dengue fever is a tropical disease spread by mosquitoes. Symptoms include headaches, muscle and joint pains, skin rashes and severe hemorrhaging in some instances.
The disease is suspected to have caused 17 deaths in Tainan, the CDC said, adding that it will seek to confirm this number based on new guidelines issued by the World Health Organization. (SFC-JSM)
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