Current Travel Health News
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. 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.
For more information on dengue fever, including the latest situation in neighbouring and overseas countries and areas, please visit the Centre for Health Protection’s thematic webpage at https://www.chp.gov.hk/en/features/38847.html
Take precautions against Mpox (also known as monkeypox) when travelling abroad
Mpox (also known as monkeypox) is a zoonotic disease caused by Mpox virus. Often found in tropical forest regions of Central and West Africa.
It is mainly transmitted by contact with infected animals, human-to-human transmission is limited. Incubation period is mainly from 6 to 13 days, symptoms are similar with Smallpox infection, but less severe.
Since 6 May 2022, multiple outbreaks were reported in Europe and North America countries, and many patient are self-identified as bisexual or men who have sex with men. Travellers planning to travel in these areas should avoid contact
with infected person. Travellers returning from these areas shall notify the doctor to seek medical treatment and inform the travel situation if feeling unwell.
For more information on Mpox, including the latest situation in overseas countries or places, please visit the World Health Organization and Hong Kong Centre for Health Protection’s thematic webpages at: https://www.who.int/health-topics/monkeypox#tab=tab_1
https://www.chp.gov.hk/en/features/105683.html
Nigeria: Lassa Fever [Update]
18 September 2023
The
Nigeria Centre for Disease Control and Prevention (NCDC) reported six additional confirmed
Lassa fever cases during the week ending September 3, bringing the total confirmed cases since the beginning of the year to 1,059 (150 confirmed cases more than the same period in 2022). The latest cases were reported from Ondo and Edo states. The death toll among confirmed cases remains at 181 with a case fatality rate of 17.1 percent.
Democratic Republic of the Congo: Cholera [Update]
18 September 2023
Health officials in the
Democratic Republic of the Congo reported that a
Cholera epidemic has been declared in Kamanyola as seventy-four (74) cases of cholera including one death were recorded since the last week of August. The cholera epidemic is affecting several corners of South Kivu. It is notably in Shabunda where this epidemic was declared on September 1 after the recording of more than 60 cases including 11 deaths in two weeks.
Italy: Dengue Fever [Update]
18 September 2023
Since the first week of August and as of 11 September 2023, officials in
Italy report 19 confirmed cases of locally transmitted
Dengue fever.
Sweden: Tularemia
18 September 2023
The Public Health Agency of
Sweden, or Folkhalsomyndigheten reports 208 cases of
Tularemia from 14 regions so far this year.
Norway: Escherchia Coli
18 September 2023
The
Norway Institute of Public Health reported about a national outbreak of the gastrointestinal bacterium,
Enterohemorrhagic E. coli (EHEC). Infection has now been detected in 15 people. Hamburger is the suspected source of infection in the ongoing outbreak.
Poland: Legionnaires’ disease
18 September 2023
As of 11 September 2023, a total of 166 cases of
Legionellosis, including 23 deaths, have been reported from
Poland.
France: Botulism
18 September 2023
Public Health
France reports a
Botulism outbreak linked to a restaurant in Bordeaux. According to officials, 10 cases have been reported resulting in eight hospitalizations and one death.
Australia: Listeriosis
18 September 2023
Health official in
Australia reported 25 cases of
Listeriosis among New South Wales residents already in 2023, which is more than usually expected to see in a whole year.
USA: Salmonella
18 September 2023
As of September 15, 2023, The Chicago Department of Public Health (CDPH) of
USA has identified 20 individuals with
Salmonella infections who ate prepared food from a taqueria in Carniceria Guanajuato located at 3140 N California in Chicago. Of these, 10 people have been hospitalized.
India: Nipah Virus [Update]
18 September 2023
In an update today from the Kerala Health Services in
India, Kerala has so far confirmed a total of six cases of
Nipah infection since the latest outbreak in the Kozhikode district. Two individuals lost their lives due to the virus, bringing the number of active cases down to four.
Paraguay: Hantavirus
18 September 2023
Paraguay health officials report nine cases and three deaths have been confirmed due to
Hantavirus year to date.
Argentina: Dengue Fever [Update]
18 September 2023
In 2023, through the end of August, 130,116
Dengue fever cases were registered in
Argentina, of which 121,528 are locally transmitted, 1,500 are travel associated and 7,088 are under investigation.
Brazil: Dengue Fever [Update]
18 September 2023
Health officials in
Brazil records 138 new outbreaks and 65 cases of
Dengue Fever in the city of Blumenau this year. The accumulated total since the first week of 2023 is 2,736 mosquito outbreaks and 2,092 confirmed cases.
Vietnam: Dengue Fever [Update]
18 September 2023
According to information from the Hanoi Department of Health, compared to the same period in 2022, the number of
Dengue Fever cases in Hanoi,
Vietnam increased 4 times.
Japan: Syphilis [Update]
18 September 2023
Japan’s National Institute of Infectious Diseases (NIID) reported an additional 207
Syphilis cases across the country through the end of August, bringing the total since the beginning of the year to 10,110 cases. Tokyo accounts for 24.6 percent of the country’s cases with 2,490, followed by Osaka (1,365), Aichi (590), Fukuoka (588) and Hokkaido (479).
Nigeria: Diphtheria [Update]
18 September 2023
Since epidemiological week 26, ending 2 July 2023,
Nigeria has recorded an unusual increase in cases of
Diphtheria across several states. From 30 June to 31 August 2023, a total of 5898 suspected cases were reported from 59 Local Government Areas (LGAs) in 11 states. In week 34 (ending 27 August 2023), 234 suspected cases have been reported from 20 LGAs in five states, with one Lab confirmed case from the 22 samples collected.
(Source: WHO 13 September 2023)
Netherlands: Influenza
18 September 2023
On 2 September 2023, the Ministry of Health, Welfare and Sport of the
Netherlands notified the World Health Organization (WHO) of a laboratory-confirmed human case of infection with a swine-origin
influenza A(H1N1) variant (v) virus in the province of North Brabant, Netherlands. This is the first human infection caused by influenza A(H1N1)v virus reported in the Netherlands in 2023.
(Source: WHO 13 September 2023)
India: Nipah Virus [Update]
13 September 2023
India health authorities reported that 3 people have been confirmed with
Nipah Virus in Kerala state. Nipah virus has been confirmed in a 9-year-old who is under treatment in a private hospital in Kozhikode, 25-year-old mother’s brother and 40-year-old who died yesterday. In addition to this, the 47 year old who died first is also assumed to be Nipah positive.
Taiwan: Dengue Fever [Update]
13 September 2023
The
Taiwan Department of Disease Control and Prevention (CDC) announced today three new local
Dengue Fever deaths last week. According to statistics from the CDC, there were 2,127 new local cases of dengue fever last week (September 5 to September 11 this year). As of September 11 this year, there have been a total of 6,464 local cases in Taiwan.
Democratic Republic of the Congo: Measles [Update]
12 September 2023
Since the beginning of the year and through August 16,
Democratic Republic of the Congo has reported a total of 204,822 suspected
Measles cases, including 2,210 confirmed cases with 3,594 measles-related deaths (CFR 1.8%) across six provinces.
Romania: Anthrax
12 September 2023
On 21 August, hospital in
Romania reported suspected
Anthrax infection in three men. Both patients participated in the slaughter and slaughtering of a cattle.
Russia: Anthrax [Update]
12 September 2023
Seven people were hospitalized in the Voronezh region after another outbreak of
Anthrax was discovered in the village of Lebedinka, Bogucharsky district in
Russia.
Denmark: Pertussis [Update]
12 September 2023
Since May, an increasing number of cases of
Pertussis have been registered in
Denmark. A total of 1,229 cases of pertussis have now been detected in 2023. There is a marked increase from 12 detected cases in January to 439 cases in August.
Romania: Measles
12 September 2023
There is an ongoing
Measles outbreak in
Romania. From October 2022 to the end of July 2023, 460 of 580 possible measles cases were confirmed in 17 of the 41 Romanian counties.
Italy: Dengue Fever [Update]
12 September 2023
There are 10 confirmed cases of
Dengue transmitted locally in
Italy and notified as of 4 September 2023.
India: Nipah Virus
12 September 2023
The Kerala Health Department issued an alert after the death of two people suspected to be caused by the
Nipah Virus in Kozhikode district in
India.
Bangladesh: Dengue Fever [Update]
12 September 2023
The World Health Organization (WHO) director-general reported that
Bangladesh is experiencing its most severe outbreak of
Dengue on record. Since the beginning of the year, more than 140,000 cases and 691 deaths have been recorded.
Guatemala: Dengue Fever
12 September 2023
The
Guatemala government declared a national emergency on Thursday due to a
Dengue outbreak in the country this year. According to data from the Ministry of Health, between January and August there have been 22 deaths from dengue in the country. In addition, 12,263 cases, 152% more than the same period last year.
Costa Rica: Dengue Fever [Update]
12 September 2023
The Ministry of Health of
Costa Rica issued a health alert due to the large increase in
Dengue cases. At epidemiological week 34, which covers from August 20 to 26, 8,261 cases of dengue are reported, which means an increase of almost double the number of cases reported last year on the same date. It went from 4,780 to 8,261 cases, 42% more than in 2022.
Philippines: Leptospirosis [Update]
12 September 2023
Health official in the
Philippines reports a 204.5 percent increase in
Leptospirosis cases from Jan. 1 to Sept. 2 this year compared to the same period in 2022. Since the beginning of the year, there have been 67 reported leptospirosis cases, including 12 fatalities. This compares with 22 cases and five deaths during the same period in 2022.
South Korea: Japanese Encephalitis
12 September 2023
Health authority in
South Korea has reported the first suspected case of
Japanese Encephalitis (presumptive diagnosis) of the year. The patient is a man in his 60s living in Gangwon-do, who was hospitalized for symptoms such as fever and unconsciousness, and was confirmed to have no history of Japanese encephalitis vaccination.
Singapore: Dengue Fever [Update]
12 September 2023
Over 6,200
Dengue cases have been reported in
Singapore as of 5 September 2023, according to the National Environment Agency (NEA).
Democratic Republic of the Congo, Kenya, Mali and Tanzania: Poliomyelitis [Update]
12 September 2023
The
Democratic Republic of the Congo (DRC) reported one more infection involving circulating
vaccine-derived poliovirus type 2 (cVDPV2), bringing its total for the year to 82.
Kenya reported two more cVDPV2 cases, raising its total to five.
Mali reported three cases involving the same type from three different regions, putting its total at six for the year. And
Tanzania reported one case from Rukwa, its second of the year.
(Source: CIDRAP 9 September 2023)