A cluster of five dengue fever cases were reported in the southern city of Kaohsiung last week, raising concerns that the disease has returned, despite subsiding earlier this year.
According to the Centers for Disease Control (CDC) on Saturday, the patients all had visited a local market. CDC officials suspect that the market may be a dengue fever-affected area.
Also, during the week of May 12-18, another indigenous dengue fever case was reported, while two cases were imported from Indonesia.
For Taiwan as a whole, a total of 108 indigenous cases of dengue fever were confirmed as of May 18 so far this year. That’s a steady trend of decline since last November.
Dengue fever is an infectious tropical disease spread by mosquitoes. The symptoms include fever, headache, muscle and joint pain, and skin rash. In a small number of cases, it can develop into hemorrhagic dengue fever, which can be fatal.