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The Centre for Health Protection (CHP) of the Department of Health (DH) is today (July 22) investigating a suspected case of Japanese encephalitis (JE) affecting a 13-year-old boy, and hence urged the public to take precautions against mosquito-transmitted diseases.
The patient, with good past health, developed fever, headache and dizziness since July 15. He consulted a private doctor but symptoms persisted and was subsequently admitted to Tuen Mun Hospital on July 19 with confused speech. He was transferred to the Paediatric Intensive Care Unit on July 20 and is currently in a serious condition.
Upon preliminary laboratory testing by the Public Health Laboratory Services Branch (PHLSB) of the CHP, his serum specimen tested negative for antibodies against JE. Further specimens will be taken from the patient later for laboratory testing.
The patient lives in Tin Shui Wai and has no recent travel history. His home contacts remained asymptomatic and have been put under medical surveillance. The CHP's investigation is proceeding.
"During the CHP's active case-finding, 32 blood specimens have been collected so far from home contacts and those attending health talks in the community. All were tested negative for JE upon laboratory testing," a CHP spokesman remarked.
"As of 4.30pm today, the CHP's hotline (2125 1122) has received 45 enquiries from members of the public since it was set up on July 16. The hotline remains in service daily from 9am to 6pm," the spokesman added.
Residents of Yuen Long District with JE symptoms are advised to promptly seek medical attention.
To date, two JE cases have been reported to the CHP this year. Three cases were reported in 2012 (including two imported cases and one local case) while one (a local case) was reported in 2011. Locally, no cases were reported from 2008 to 2010.
"Regarding the two confirmed cases reported last week, latest investigations by the CHP revealed that both male patients aged 59 and 52 were in Hong Kong during most of the incubation period, so both were hence classified as locally acquired," the spokesman said.
The spokesman explained that JE is a viral disease transmitted by the bite of infected mosquitoes. Culex tritaeniorhynchus (Culicine mosquito) is the principal vector of JE and is nocturnal. It mainly breeds in waterlogged fields, marshes, ditches and small stagnant collections of water around cultivated fields. The mosquitoes become infected by feeding on pigs and wild birds infected with the JE virus, and then transmit the virus to humans and animals during the feeding process. JE is endemic in the Mainland and Southeast Asia.
Most JE virus infections are mild without apparent symptoms other than fever with headache. More severe infections are clinically characterised by quick onset of headache, high fever, neck stiffness, impaired mental state, coma, tremors, occasional convulsions (especially in infants) and paralysis.
To prevent contracting JE, members of the public, particularly those living in rural areas, are reminded to take heed of the following preventive measures, especially after dark:
* Wear long-sleeved clothes and trousers;
* Use effective insect repellents containing DEET over exposed parts of the body when outdoors; and
* Use mosquito screens or nets in rooms which are not air-conditioned.
Travellers to endemic areas of JE should take the following precautions:
* Avoid outdoor exposure to mosquito bites at dusk and dawn, especially in rural areas, when mosquitoes spreading this virus are most active;
* Apply effective insect repellents containing DEET over exposed parts of the body and clothes; and
* Consider vaccination that should be completed at least 10 days before departure to endemic areas in Asia or the Western Pacific for staying over one month, particularly in high-risk rural areas.
The public may visit the CHP's website (www.chp.gov.hk/en/content/9/24/28.html) for more information on JE and that of the DH's Travel Health Service (www.travelhealth.gov.hk) for further information on JE vaccination and outbreaks in other areas.
Ends/Monday, July 22, 2013
Issued at HKT 19:27
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